Expect the Unexpected
by Zoraya Windwalker
Summary: It's only a matter of time until you reach your breakingpoint, and nothing makes sense anymore. You do things you wouldn't normally, and everything might turn upside-down.    Now rated M!
1. Chapter 1

First: I don't own anything about Vampire diaries.

Second: This is some kind of a test-run I think. I've never written anything in English before - at least, not stories. It's a first for Vampire Diaries, too. AND I hadn't sent it to a beta beforehand - I wanted to know how good/bad I could do it on my own. So... on with the party. Enjoy (hopefully).

OH, and before I forget - this is after ISOBEL and before FOUNDERS DAY.

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Sighing, he took another deep swallow out of his glass.

It's not as if he _planned _on this to happen. He would've been happy to get Katherine out of this damn make-shift prison of a tomb and burn the whole city down. Burn it down, and dance on its pyres, with _her_ securely in his arms.

It could all be so simple… snatch one, or two humans a day, drink and dance the night away, and just _love_.

But nothing was ever that easy.

So, okay, she wasn't in there – decided to make a run for it. He's glad she did, really. Better than to spend a century and a half starving.

But not to say anything to him? A simple, little note; _one _'I'm safe, don't worry' would've changed _everything_.

He knows that it's not going to help, dwelling on every little would-have-been and should-have-been.

It only made him act like a sick and twisted mix of every soulful, brooding, guilt ridden vampire in existence – he actually kind of reminded himself of _Stefan_ at the moment.

And that, of all things, should be a dead giveaway to _stop the hell thinking about that cunning little bitch._

But he never was one to follow a good advice. Not even his own, it seems.

So he keeps on sitting in front of the fire, and alternating between sipping from his glass, and staring into the amber depths of its contents.

He got over the fact that Katherine left him, _them_, just fine. He still was a bit freaked out about how _fast_ he's gotten over it - And how long it took him to realize that it was all because of Elena.

He always _despised_ humans for all their petty feelings. And to look into the eyes of Katherines pretty little carbon copy – and see the pity, the compassion… the understanding in them?

Disturbing as hell. Because, god (and the devil, and nearly everyone else) knows how hard he worked on pushing her away.

He tried to confuse her – acting _friendly_ and _nice _(and that he's even capable of acting like he meant it… _so strange)_ the one moment, and like the 'self serving psychopath with no redeeming qualities' the next.

When that didn't help, he tried to get to her over her friends. Hurting Caroline, frightening Bonnie half do death (_draining_ her half to death, this one time), and messing with his dear, saintly brother.

And it never did him any good. She always came back, like a damn boomerang.

So, when you can't beat someone…. Yeah, so he gave in to those damn feelings.

And look were it took him.

_Isobel_, telling everyone who cared to listen that he's in love with Elena.

Stefan, with his cute, little lecture about 'history won't repeat itself'.

What is there to repeat, anyway? It's not as if Elena would do something like that – _could_ do something like that.

She's far too nice, too _human_, to be anything but honest and faithful.

Sighing again (he's got to _stop_ doing this… next he'll get one of those stupid, brooding expressions on his face, and start to drink _animal_ blood….) he put his, now empty, glass on a side table and pushed himself off of the couch.

He had to go to bed, sleep, _hide_, or whatever.

Tomorrow he'll have to be on top of his game. Be Damon Salvatore, always charming, always playing games, and always be above and beyond of anything even _resembling_ a deep feeling.

Tomorrow, on Founders day, he'll have to prove it to the world that there was nothing more than a friendship between him and Elena.

And after that, he'll pack his things and leave, never to look back again.

_But when did things ever go as _he_ planned them?_

_-End-_

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So, done... liked it, hated it? I would LOVE a few review. Good, bad, doesn't matter - as long as it's constructive.^^

so long

Zora


	2. Chapter 2

_Okay, so, now I know that I said this would be a oneshot… and technically, it still is._

_But I found that my muse still wasn't satisfied, and so there is more. The first chapter still stand on it's own, as does this one. I think this is gonna be a collection of oneshots. Every "chapter" will have an end on it's own, no cliffhanger or "tbc"._

_But when you read them from chap one to two (and so on) they will add up to a longer story. I hope that makes sense o.O…._

_AH, and for THIS chapter, I actually had a beta reader. Thanks to the AMAZING Avecia._

_And before I forget it: The Vampire diaries don't belong to me, and I don't get anything for writing this._

_So… enjoy (hopefully^^)_

_Spoiler warning: Founders Day_

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_Pain._

That was the dominating thought in his mind, shortly followed by a_ son of a bitch_, directed at the bastard looming over him.

And, for a while, those were the last _coherent_ thoughts he had.

Everything in his brain was muddled – as if he was looking at the happenings around him through a wine glass. Reality was distorted and bent into odd shapes. Voices and sounds had an edge to them, and his limbs just wouldn't do what he wanted them to.

So he let himself float on this feeling, trying to shut out the pain, coursing like fire through his veins (And if it wasn't for that damn feeling, he could happily pretend to just be drunk, and maybe surrounded by a few beautiful women).

Somewhere inside the mess that were his thoughts, he registered that a pair of arms heaved him over a shoulder – it was painfully digging into his stomach – before the same arms mindlessly tossed him on a hard, concrete floor.

Then, nothing, as everything, finally, went black.

The first thing that returned to him was his sense of smell.

And what a pity _that_ was. Because, really, gasoline was a nasty thing when he had to make a pit stop to refuel his car. But to have the stuff poured all around (and over) him? _Not_ his cup of tea… and wait, _what_? Poured _over_ him? ( Elena, with her fearful eyes, rambling, _pleading_ for his life. Speaking all those beautiful words, just for him; to save _his_ life. Elena, who made everything alright again.

But this time, Elena was nowhere near. The only Gilbert in sight was that damn Bastard, with his damn ring and his damn attitude.

Oh, how he _hated_ that guy. )

The council's henchmen were done emptying the gasoline canisters, and John waved them off, sent them on their merry way.

With his eyesight finally improving, he could see John leaning over a prone figure.

He blinked a few times, trying to get his vision clear… and wished a second later he hadn't succeeded. There on the floor was Anna (little Annabelle, with her cute little smiles and shy ways… she was never made to be pulled into this kind of crap) weak as a kitten, pleading with her eyes and her words.

But the only thing it got her was a stake straight through the heart.

Damon bunched his fists, tried to find even an _ounce_ of strength, but it just wasn't going to happen. And he hated it. This one time he _wanted_ to help someone, he couldn't. It just wasn't fair.

The only thing the girl wanted was to free her mother and live a peaceful life (And when the hell had he started to think about what was _fair_ and what people wanted?).

He saw John ascend the stairs on the opposite side of the room, and could hear a door close.

Only after the sounds of his footsteps were gone, did he register the crackling of fire, and the occasional screaming around him. He rolled around, trying to get up, and saw another, unsuspected companion in this damn misfortune.

It was a fleeting thrill to see the shock on the Mayors face as he told him that, _yes_, he actually was a vampire.

Not even the cracking of his neck did anything for him.

As the fire slowly swallowed more of the basement (more of the vampires all around him – swallowed the last remnants of the still form of Anna), all he could think about was, how he never would be able to see _her_ again.

Granted, he was planning on skipping town, but at least he would've been able to return and see her – if he wanted to.

But now? Now he would never get to see her laugh again, or see how her eyes sparkled when she got mad.

_No. _He thought, refusing to let his life end like this.

It couldn't end like this. Not now, not as he finally found his way back to his humanity.

Finally, he could just forget about Katherine, spent eternity for himself.

But he couldn't help it. The vervain still had him weak, and the fire, the _heat _made it difficult to even _think_ straight.

And just as he was about to give up (not that he would admit it, later, when the rollercoaster that was life would slow down again) Stefan was there.

The brother whom he left behind those many decades ago. The brother whom he threatened to torment for all eternity – and who would throw the threats right back into his face.

He was there, and he got him up and _out_, out of the fire, out of the heat, and into the beautiful, fresh, _cool_ night air.

And then there was Elena, with her worried face, and her gentle hands, and he knew he could never, for his life, leave this town.

He could never leave her (or his damn, holier-than-though brother) behind.

-end-

_xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox_

Sooo… done. If you liked it, please click on the little button below and let me know^^.

So long

Zora


	3. Chapter 3

_Aaaand another chapter. I can't really decide if I like it or not, so I'll leave that to you._

_Again, a big thanks to Avecia, for she, again, did an amazing job as a beta._

_Also, I don't own any of the characters, and I don't get anything for writing this._

_Oh, before I forget: Spoilers for "Founders Day". Yeah, were still in this episode^^._

_So, on with it^^._

_xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox_

_Life sucks either way_

Not even a pun intended. There is still no real reason to be here, in this room.

And no sarcasm, no cocky smirk or carefree attitude in sight. Just words, and explaining, and trying to make things right again (And hoping, _praying_, to anybody who might hear, that they believe it's the fault of the vervain still in his blood, because, really? Him, trying to make things _better_ instead of worse? Yeah, _right_.)

It's still a task to walk around, not letting anyone see that he's not at his best at the moment.

But what else to do? Every plan he made has been beaten up and thrown in front of his feet.

So he had to pick up the mangled pieces and make the best out of it.

And at the moment, it is best to try and mend the only familial relationship he is _able_ to mend. Saint Stefan might have saved him tonight – he might have accepted him back into his life, but before the two of them will have something even _close_ to an understanding… yeah, well, it's a long way to go.

A way, he's not even sure he wants to travel. Because, come on, he survived without him for a long time, not really caring what he was up to.

He only started to see him as a brother again because of Elena.

Too bad he wants her for himself. And he wouldn't hesitate to try and _make_ her his, if it were only Stefans feelings at risk. He's learned to _not_ care about them. But he can clearly see – hell, _anybody_ could see – that she is in love with him. And to come between the two of them, would not only hurt his brother, but Elena as well.

And as loud as his mind is screaming at him to _want, take, have_ – those good-for-nothing _feelings_ try to tell him to let them have their happily ever after, even if it meant a bleak future for himself.

It's like in one of those really old cartoons, were there is a devil on one shoulder, and an angel on the other.

The last one hundred plus years, the angel was happily occupied with a steady income of Whiskey, Tequila and the like. But recently, it sobered up, and was trying to make up for the lost time.

With really bad timing, too. For the first time in _forever_ he really cared for someone.

And not even the kind of 'I'll kill for you' caring. No, it was the stuff that made him think really stupid things like 'I'd _die_ for you.' 'I'd take off my ring and take a bath in the sun' kind of caring.

And how… out of character was _that. _If he were to say things like that out loud… no, better not to think about it, because he wouldn't here the _end_ of it. Stefan would have a damn field day.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Closing the door of the Gilbert house behind him, he's prepared to just walk home and sleep the last effects of the vervain away but, as usual, fate wouldn't have it.

Elena's coming up the front steps of the porch, looking as beautiful as ever, not even a hair out of order.

And while he's baring his soul (and damn the thing for even existing… really, who needs a _soul_ these days anyway?) he can't shake the feelings of 'run' and 'hide.

First he ignores them… he hasn't been honest about what's going on inside of his _heart_ for decades – no wonder he's not thrilled about it now.

But the longer he stands there, the more this scene is feeling just _wrong_.

She has the looks, the voice, even the way she tilts her head is all too familiar.

But there's something in her eyes that rubs him up just the wrong way.

So he kisses her cheek, feeling how cold it was. And then, his lips are on hers, and there are shivers running down his spine.

But not because he finally, _finally_ is kissing Elena, but because,_ of course_… he's actually _not_.

_Katherine_

He's not arrogant enough (ha, who would have thought that _that_ was going to happen, like…_ever?_) to think it's because of him, or even his brother.

Maybe they were an afterthought. Maybe enough time has gone by and she wanted to play with them again. But now, as he finally realised who is standing in front of him, he can see it in her eyes. She's back, and she's here to stay.

Stay, and leave destruction, and mayhem, and chaos in her wake.

Before he knows it, Jenna is inviting her in and from there everything only _can_ go downhill.

The bitch is back…

_Let the games begin._

_-end-_

_xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox_

_I hope you liked it. If so, PLEASE let me know^^._

_So long,_

_Zora_


	4. Chapter 4

And here I am again^^. This time, I had to write my own plot, because there were no more released episode for me to use as a background. AND there are dialogues in this chapter, too. Because of that, my beta had a WHOLE of a lot more to do than usually, because I never was that good with that. So, I bow to you, my sweet beta Avecia^^.

And to do everything right: I don't own any of the characters, and I don't get anything for writing this but the reviews of my beloved readers.

Spoiler warning: throughout the show.

And now, on with it.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

He just couldn't decide what to do.

Usually he had no such problems, but the prospect of seeing Katherine again – _really_ seeing, without her pretending to be someone else- kind of threw him off of his game.

He wandered around the streets, not even realising that he was doing it, too deep in his own, personal hell to think about anything clearly.

At least until the wind carried a scream straight to his ears. A scream he would recognise everywhere, under any circumstances.

_Elena_.

And he took off running. Running faster than ever before.

Because, _god_, how could he be so _stupid_?

He saw Katherine entering the house. With Jenna inside of it, and probably Jeremy and _Daddy-dearest,_ too.

And now Elena was inside there. With Katherine.

Stupid, stupid, _stupid_!

As he arrived back at the Gilbert house, he didn't stop at the door. Just rushed inside and followed his nose. Literally – because the smell of the blood was like a blinking neon sign: _'please enter the kitchen'._

And what a sight he was welcomed with.

John, lying sideways on the floor, gasping for breath; trying in vain to stop the blood flowing from of his body.

Over him, still with a wicked looking carving knife in her hand, stood Katherine, smiling sweetly at her mirror image.

And there, just a bit in front of him, was Elena, with her hand pressed over her mouth, her eyes wide open in shock and… curiosity? _Weird_.

Just then Katherine turned fully to face Elena. She put the carving knife onto the counter (thank god for small miracles) then came to a stop in front of her and… held her hand out.

"We haven't officially met yet. I'm Katherine."

An eerily silent moment followed as Elena took the hand in front of her and gave it one, solid shake.

"Elena. But I think you already knew _that_."

And he just stood there, unable to do anything; not even succeeding in getting his mouth to close again.

He pictured this moment many times.

There was always a lot of screaming and even more blood involved.

The _blood_ was there, and a few minutes ago, there was even screaming.

But the only one bleeding was John, and the scream from Elena was one of shock, not pain or horror.

And now the two women stood there, completely ignoring him, still grasping their hands together.

Katherine tipped her head to the side, slowly taking Elena in.

"How…interesting. You're not afraid. Nor are you surprised. Why's that?"

Yeah, that's something _he_ wanted to know, too.

But Elena just shrugged her shoulders, finally letting go of Katherine's hand.

"Honestly? With everything happening around here… it's not _that_ big of a surprise to see you here. Isobel mentioned you once – and there was no way she could know about you, if she hadn't already met you. It was only a matter of time."

Yeah, and that _he_ told Isobel to _'tell the bitch to come get it herself'_ probably hasn't anything to do with it, at all…

He seriously had to make sure she wasn't high on something – it just couldn't _be_ that she was that calm. But that was a task for later.

Right now it was more important to prevent more… homicide (As John finally stopped with those irritating wheezing sounds –right around the same time he stopped breathing).

"Well, that's good to know then. I guess I'll see you around. Bye. Oh, and Damon? Pleasure catching up with you, lover."

And with that, she blurred away, leaving _him_ still dumbfounded and Elena with a dead uncle/father and a nasty bloodbath to explain.

"I guess the time for putting that ring back on his finger is gone by now?"

She still sounded calm and collected; it freaked him the hell out. But as he slowly came back to his mind, he answered her anyway.

"Yeah. No breathing and his heart stopped beating. That ring ain't gonna help him anymore."

Elena nodded, and slowly made her way to the body of her last _living _(not anymore) parent.

She was as still as a statue for a moment, just looking at the man, taking everything in. From his half open eyes, staring into nowhere, to the gaping wound in his stomach and the missing fingers.

"I'm still waiting for the _'Oh, my _god_, he's dead, what should I _do'feeling to set in, but… I don't know. All I can feel is relief. And I know I'm a terrible person for it, but he let so many… bad things happen; _did_ so many bad things…"

And now he really was at a loss for… well, anything.

"Elena, I…"

He sighed and made his way over to her, kneeling beside her (careful not to get blood on his clothes) and turned her head so she would face him.

"It's alright. A lot happened today and… you must be drawn. I promise you, by tomorrow you'll feel sorry for what happened to him, but today you are at your limits. Just… let me take care of this mess. Go on up, take a shower and try to sleep.

We'll worry about the rest tomorrow."

She just blinked, and opened her mouth a few times, without a sound coming out, before she got her bearings.

"I can't… I'm supposed to meet Stefan at the hospital. Caroline was hurt and..."

She trailed off there, not sure what else to say.

"I'll call him – explain what happened. He should be here anyway. Make sure you're safe if Katherine decides to come back today. Okay?"

Again with the blinking, but then she just nodded – a jerky, short movement, but it was better than nothing – and headed for the stairs.

Shortly after, he heard water running from the upstairs bathroom and turned back to the mess at hand.

_Well, __we've had mayhem and chaos. That leaves only destruction._

_-end-_

_How was that? My first try at a story with dialogues in FOREVER!_

_Reviews are love, people^^._

_So long_

_Zora_


	5. Chapter 5

Another chapter^^.

And it's still SO damn short. But I promise they're gonna get longer.

A HUGE thanks goes to Avecia, of course, for her amazing work as my beta.

And ANOTHER one, to all my readers – especially the ones who left me reviews. I LIVE for them, people *gg*.

And now: Spoilers for season one, and I own nothing, and I GET nothing. I just have my fun messing with them^^.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

After dumping John (and his fingers) somewhere in the woods, he made quick work of the blood.

As the kitchen finally lost its _Friday the 13th_ look, he sat in the living room and waited – trying as hard as he could _not_ to think about the last few days (and obviously failing).

He should call Stefan or look for Jenna and Jeremy. He should give the teacher a short memo that the town was – once again – in danger of ending up as an all-you-can-eat snack bar.

Hell, he'll have to call in a council meeting. And what a torture trip that'll be…

How to explain to a bunch of vampire-phobics that there was an exact replica of Elena Gilbert on the loose – only far, _far_ less pleasant. Far less _human_.

And how he came by this information?

He either had to do some _very_ creative story-telling… or tell the truth.

_Bitch. Comes back here as if it's her goddamn birthright…_

Suddenly there came a loud, crashing sound from upstairs. And yelling, followed by even more crashing.

He was on his feet and up the stairs in less than a blink, trying to locate the sound.

Then Elena came out of her room, hair still dripping wet clad only in a bathrobe.

"Jeremy's room." Was all she said before she made a dash for it – only to halt her steps in shock a few moments later.

The whole room was upside down – clothes ripped out of the closet, books on the floor and ripped sketches strewn about.

And amidst all this chaos there was Jeremy, heaving hard breaths and a look on his face that nearly scared _him_.

His eyes had such a hard edge; it was a task not to flinch at them. And they were trained on Elena, with a hatred in them, even he couldn't even muster when interacting with Stefan, most of the time.

"You… this is all _your_ fault. Why couldn't you… I tried _so_ hard to….. _fuck_!"

He looked at Elena, trying to find out if the rambling made any sense to her, but she looked just as puzzled as he felt.

And Jeremy just stood there, hands balled into fists, rage and pain and such _hate_ radiating off him.

That's when his eyes - and nose - caught something through the open door on the bathroom counter.

It was a vial, remnants of blood still clinging to the glass. Right beside it an empty pill bottle.

He closed his eyes, hoping it was something, _anything_ other than he thought.

But no, the faint smell, nearly buried under the stench of John's blood, was definitely _vampire_.

He barely caught himself before he burst out laughing.

The kid had tried to turn himself. Of course the vampire blood in his system healed any damage the pills had done.

He was _this_ close to just grant this idiot his wish and snap his neck.

_I should have known that the boy wouldn't have asked the questions he had without reason._

Seems like he could do nothing right today, every thing, his whole life, _Elena's_ life tumbling down in shatters around him.

"Jeremy what…"

She sounded so vulnerable; it hurt him. Deep down to his very core.

In one night John had try to kill her boyfriend, was killed _himself_, Katherine came back to wreak havoc… and not _one_ of those things got her to break. But her damn brother had her nearly on her knees in less than a minute.

She was afraid, worried – and judging by the hitch in her voice, close to tears.

"Don't. Just… don't. It was you. Everything I ever had – you took it from me. _My_ parents would still be here – if it weren't for you. Vicky? Still safe and sound. But you just _had_ to fall for a vampire, and drag everyone down with you. And _Anna_. Uncle John wanted _you_ safe from your precious Stefan and Damon. But _they_ are still here. Only Anna was killed, not them. It comes all down to you… It should have been you, you know? I wish you never would've made it out of that car."

As Jeremy finished his little speech, Elena just stood there, silent tears running down her face.

"Oh. Okay… Night, Jeremy."

Her voice sounded tiny and broken, but all he could do was stare after her as she turned around and left the room. The next thing he heard was her door as she closed and locked it.

Now it was just Damon and Jeremy, silently staring at each other, neither knowing what to do or say.

He wished he could _kill_ the boy. Rip him apart; show him what he just did to Elena.

But again, his actions would only hurt _her, _because even as Jeremy lashed out on her, he'd seen the love and concern for her brother in her eyes.

He had no clue how long he stood there, but later – hours later – he would regret not going after her immediately.

Because as he finally got the courage to enter her room, the only thing he found was her diary on the bed, and a note atop of it.

Just a few lines, written in her neat, tiny scrawl, signed with nothing but a _'Goodbye'_.

_-end-_

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Hope you liked it – I wasn't so sure about this chapter. I made Jeremy say a few REALLY nasty things, but I promise, I have my reasons for it^^.

Hugs

Zora


	6. Chapter 6

And here I am again. And as I promised, this chapter is longer. Not by much, but still^^.

As always, a huge thanks to Avecia – I think without her, I wouldn't even had written more than ONE chapter.

And THANK YOU, dear reader, for still being with me – especially those of you who left me reviews^^.

I don't own anything about VD, I just have fun messing with them.

Enjoy!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

She took a few, deep breaths before checking her appearance in the rear-view mirror.

If it weren't for the dried tear tracks down her face, she would have looked perfectly cold and detached.

Glancing down at the paper in her hands, she straightened her shoulders, got out of the car and marched to the front door of the house she had parked in front of.

She was still surprised how easily she pulled all of this off.

Not _once_ had Damon – never mind her brother - suspected anything strange going on.

Not one of them had seen the clothes underneath her bathrobe. And Damon? He was so shocked at seeing Katherine, that he missed the moment the woman had slipped her the piece of paper before disappearing.

It was a simple note: an address and underneath a message, practical and to the point.

'_Be there before sunrise if you don't want the rest of your loved ones dead'_

At first she thought about telling Damon about the note. He would be able to protect them, right? But the longer she thought, the clearer it became that he couldn't be everywhere at once. And, sure, she trusted him with her life – despite what everyone else thought and said about him.

But what about Stefan. Or Bonnie and Caroline. Her aunt Jenna; her _brother_? None of them had done anything other than always doubt him. So why should he help _them_? And after the things Jeremy said… really, what was left for her to lose? She and Stefan had begun drifting apart. Lies to protect her, him, her _family_, coming in between them. And not to forget the strange flutter her heart always made when Damon was near her.

Her best friend slowly, but surely, had slipped away too. She loved Bonnie. Always had, always would – but things had happened in the last few weeks and months…there were so many issues, and she really wasn't sure if their friendship would, _could_, survive them.

And finally her brother. Her baby brother who had learned to hate her. She always wanted to protect him. Keep him safe from all the ugly things out there.

If she couldn't even accomplish that, what _could_ she? She had failed, miserably.

Just like he said. Their parents (or his, according to him) would've never been in that car, if it wasn't for her.

Stefan probably wouldn't have stayed in Mystic Falls if she hadn't been there – and Damon never would have come, if Stefan hadn't been there. And without those two, Vicky would still be annoying the hell out of everyone.

So here she stood, in front of a house, with Katherine waiting inside of it; trying to collect enough courage to knock.

But all she needed to do, really, was remember the hate in Jeremy's eyes. That was enough for her to make her heart hard, and her fear fade. Nothing in this world, _nothing_, could be worse than that.

So she lifted her hand and resolutely knocked three times.

It was less then ten seconds later that the door swung open and she, once again, stared in the face of her mirror image.

And for a while they both just stood there, still reeling in the wonder of what they saw.

Then the lips of Katherine, so strongly resembling her own, twisted in an amused smile.

"Well, look at what we have here. I really thought you would just run into the arms of my Salvatore brothers and let them… _take care_ of this. Tell me, are you a martyr? Maybe a little wannabe heroine? Or maybe you're just plain _stupid_."

And Elena? She couldn't help but to laugh at this. Theoretically she new that this woman wouldn't like to be laughed at, but she just couldn't hold it in any longer.

Her whole, clichéd, all-American-girl life had fallen to pieces in the span of just a little over a year.

She laughed so hard she had to clutch the doorframe with one hand, and her stomach with the other.

And as wave after wave bubbled out of her, she could clearly see the annoyance and anger grow in Katherine.

But it really didn't matter to her. Not any longer. But, nonetheless, she struggled to return to calm and collected, and after a while she succeeded.

"Sorry. That was… no, I'm not a martyr. Or _any_ of the above. I'm just tired, is all. Really, really tired.

And I couldn't bother to wait for the games you surely want to play. So. Here I am. The freak of nature. Little carbon copy of the great Katherine – your very own walking, talking mirror image. Do what you want with me, I don't really care. But be sure that I end up dead when you're done with it."

With that she pushed past the other woman, successful in doing the one thing nobody had done, _ever_ before.

She left her speechless.

Xoxoxoxoxo

Damon finally – after what seemed like an eternity, but probably was only about half an hour - left Jeremy's room, and went back to the living room, deciding that Elena needed a little bit of peace, over everything else.

He texted the teacher – letting him know that more shit was about to hit the fan.

After _that_ he tried to reach the Sheriff – only to remember something about Caroline being injured, as he just got Liz Forbes' voicemail.

He contemplated to just let Stefan wait, but he promised Elena to keep him 'up to date', so he texted _him_ too.

If, by any chance, he wasn't in the mood to read anything Damon wrote, it surely wasn't _his_ fault.

And then he just waited. And waited some more. An hour later there was still no news from Stefan – meaning he assumed right that he would ignore any texts from him.

He slowly started to relax and leaned back into the couch.

Wanting to make sure that there was nothing suspicious out there, he closed his eyes and concentrated everything he had on his hearing.

A few night birds flying around, and the odd squirrel rushing over trees, a few cars. Nothing out of the ordinary.

And upstairs, there was a healthy, strong heartbeat….

Wait, _a_? _One_?

And once again he was up the stairs. First he thought the stupid boy had done something… well, _stupid_ again.

So he rushed into the room, only to find him sitting on the floor, staring forlornly at a drawing of Anna. In the back of his mind he registered that is was a surprisingly _good_ painting, but really, the abilities of the kid were the last things on his mind.

Fearing the worst he got to Elena's door and pushed it open.

The room was empty, the curtain blowing ominously, courtesy of the open window.

His eyes caught something on the bed, and he slowly made his way to it.

It was a note, and underneath it, Elena's diary.

He dreaded reading the note, but really, he had no choice. So he forced himself to man up, and brought it in front of his eyes.

_Damon,_

_I know this may be a little… dramatic, but I really couldn't think of anything else._

_Obviously I'm not here anymore, but, believe me, I have my reasons. I'm tired, Damon._

_Everything I thought I knew about life was a _lie_. All around me, I'm loosing people. Friends, and family, and I just… I don't want to anymore. I can't _take_ it._

_So I go. Please be sure to tell Stefan that I love him, even if we both knew that we wouldn't have made it much longer – not together, not as a couple._

_And tell Jeremy he's gonna get what he wanted. Maybe it will help him deal somehow._

_If you see Bonnie – and I know it is a lot to ask – please tell her she'll always be my best friend, even if we see things very different now._

_The diary is for you. I couldn't think of a better way to let you know how important you've become to me._

_So, you probably got it by now – I'm not coming back. Please don't think it's your fault – or anyone else's really. It's _everything_ around me, and I guess I'm just not strong enough._

_I have nothing else to say, really. I hope you'll understand._

_Goodbye_

The note fluttered to the floor as he rushed out of the window, hoping, _praying_, that he wouldn't be too late. Get to her before the _one_ good thing in his damned _unlife_ would be gone.

It took him a moment to find what he was looking for. But then it was there. The soft, heavenly fragrance that was _Elena_.

In the blink of an eye he was gone, out into the night, haunted by the nightmare that would be his world if he couldn't get to her in time.

-end-

And that's it – at least, for now. Reviews are love, people ^^

So long

Zora


	7. Chapter 7

Here I go again. And as always I have to thank Avecia that this story isn't full of nasty grammar mistakes. THANK you my dear^^.

And a bow to my readers – and an extra one for my reviewers – for staying with me.

Now: I do own nothing, I just mess with them.

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Katherine was still standing in the doorway half a minute later, wondering how the hell this little human just did that. She had met many people in her life – made a lot of enemies, too.

And they tried _everything_ to get one over her. Threats, torture, mind games… and not one of them ever managed her to shut up.

And then along came a puny little human, telling her she's tired of her games after only _just_ meeting her.

After she got her bearings back – after she made sure nothing of the shock was reflecting on her face – she walked back into the house, door closing with an ominous _thump_.

The girl was waiting for her in the living room, sitting on one of the couches, looking as if she was waiting for her host to bring coffee.

Katherine just shook her head and took a seat on an armchair opposite her, contemplating what to do next.

It's true; she _really_ loved to play her games. And she was no sweet little pop-culture vampire, all housebroken and feeling guilty over past sins.

She killed – sometimes out of pure fun, sometimes in self defence and sometimes in punishment.

And she lived for the hunt; liked smelling the fear and adrenaline coming off in waves from her victims. But she always, _always_ made sure whom it was she killed.

Never children, of course. Beside the fact that such a tiny body just wasn't enough to really satisfy her hunger, there was nothing such an act did for her.

And the defenceless - didn't matter if man or woman – were no fun.

So most of the time her prey were men. Big, brutal ones – the kind who thought it was a sport to hurt women – were the best.

So full of themselves, it was a pleasure to see the fear in their eyes when they finally got what was happening. What was coming to them.

And the girl, _Elena_, was mostly innocent, still barely more than a child (she never liked the term _teenager_) and _utterly_ defenceless when it came to strength.

Plus, she never planned on actually killing her.

No matter what anyone thought of her, Katherine protected what was hers.

A long, long time ago she had a child, and Elena was the ultimate proof that the Pierce bloodline survived.

And no one of her blood, however watered-down it was, would be in danger from her.

She came here to tie up loose ends, maybe play with her boys, and leave the town with everyone still reeling – maybe leave a few casualties on the sidelines. But Elena wouldn't have been one of them. She ordered her here, true, but only so the Salvatores would be warned not to come in her way. That she could just take their little human girl and have her ways with her.

So… what to do now?

"Listen, _Katherine_. I'm not here to sit and stare the whole night. Just _do_ something already."

Cold. Defeated and utterly empty. She heard people that sounded like this before. Usually before they did something like… jumping off the Empire State building.

"You're of my blood, did you know that?"

Best play for a little time. It couldn't be too long till one of her boys – probably Damon – figured out that little Elena was missing. She could talk in the meanwhile, and let him be the white (or black, as it was) knight, rescuing his damsel in distress.

"I figured. What of it?"

"Well… _'Blood is thicker than water'_ – ever heard the saying? I am a vampire my dear – and quite the old one at that. Humans really don't have a _grasp_ on what blood really means. Just that it runs through your veins; that you need it to stay alive. And that, sometimes, it can kill you. But vampires… we need it like oxygen. It's the _one_ thing we need above all else. Do you really think I would just _kill_ the last person with _my_ blood running through her?"

Oh hell… she wasn't really planning on telling her this. Now, where would be the _fun_ in all the pretty little games she planned?

And then the girl finally showed some emotions. There was no fear in her eyes liked she wished for their first meeting. Nor could she find the relief like most people would show after her last statement.

All she could make out was disappointment with a hint of anger.

_What the hell…_

And then Elena jumped up off the couch and began pacing the room.

"Why the _hell_ not? It would be so _easy_. I'm here already; I won't scream or try to run. You could just… get rid of me. Be unique again, have _them_ for yourself again. Just… _please_!"

There were tears now. This human version of herself (human in everything… beating heart, _feeling_ heart…) was crying because she saw a chance to flee, and it was ripped out of her grasp.

And in that moment, Katherine saw how this dark side of the world had ruined everything the girl had. Could see that the thought of living on and watching, unable to really help anyone, was worse than to just close her eyes, never to open them again.

Before she could change her mind – think what it will be like to mourn for her last living descendant – she was in front of her, holding her face between her hands.

"As you wish."

Then she stood on tiptoes, kissed her forehead, and sunk her teeth in her soft neck.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Damon cursed himself; and the damn 'modern times'. Car fumes, heavy perfumes and a whole bunch of other things, made him loose Elena's track at least four times.

As it was, it took him – even with his extraordinary speed – nearly an hour to follow it to the outskirts of Mystic Falls.

He didn't pause to knock on the door, just kicked it in (good thing there wasn't a human living here. The crash against the barrier wouldn't have been nice), storming into the room were her scent was the strongest.

Only to curse a blue streak once he was there.

He stood in the living room, surrounded by the smells of Katherine and Elena, but neither of them was actually _there_. After calming down a bit – and straining his ears – he came to the conclusion that they already left the house.

He searched the remaining rooms; just to be sure. But as he assumed, nothing.

About to leave the house, he stopped dead in his tracks. On the door, in plain sight, was a piece of paper. He recognised Katherines writing before he even read the words (and why was it that everyone wrote damn _notes_ tonight?).

_Damon,_

_(For I really don't think it will be Stefan finding us) I took her to visit her parents._

_xoxo Katherine_

.

"Visit her parents…? Graveyard! Damn."

And off he went. In the back of his mind he registered that he did an awful lot of running today. He would _thank_ Katherine for that later. Now he had to make sure Elena wouldn't _stay_ with her parents.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Done! Reviews are love, people^^.

So long,

Zora


	8. Chapter 8

So, I'm back again, and I bring a new chapter^^.

But I think a few of you REALLY will hate me after this one. Just remember, this isn't the last chapter so… bear with me, yeah?

Alright, now: THANKS to my dear Avecia, for she is the best beta I could hope for, and to to my readers and reviewers^^.

And I own nothing 'bout Vampire diaries, I'm just – as always - messing with them.

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

He arrived at the graveyard, already slightly anxious. There was a bad feeling creeping up inside of him, and no matter what he did to silence it, it got louder with every passing second.

He paid no attention to the gravestones passing left and right from him – he could find his way to the final resting place of Elena's parents blind, deaf and half dead.

As the grave was finally in eye sight, he slowly came to a stop.

There, in front of him, sitting on the headstone, was Katherine.

The moon shone bright, giving a celestial glimmer to her hair; only the gruesome grin on her face, ruined the effect of the pale light.

But something wasn't right with her eyes. The usual edge, the stony, utterly _cold _feeling they gave off normally… it was, somehow, missing.

At first he thought he got them mixed up – _again_. But no, his ears couldn't detect a heartbeat. And as he was sick and tired of this whole, fucked-up night, he cut straight to the matter at hand.

"Where is Ele…," but the question answered itself, even before he had a chance to finish his sentence.

As his eyes had roamed around a bit, they had fallen on something at Katherine's feet.

And for the life of him, he had no idea how he hadn't seen it – _her_ – until now.

Because on the ground lay Elena.

Elena, with her straight chestnut hair. Elena, with a barely there smile on her face. Elena, with her soft and caring eyes – eyes that stared into nothing.

And there was still no heartbeat he could detect.

Unconsciously he made a few steps closer to her, but his knees gave out under him as he was only halfway there.

There was a look of disbelieve on his face. She couldn't be gone.

Where was the drama? The fight; the harsh words?

It wasn't supposed to be like this. Katherine should play games with them. Hurt and kill friends and family, manipulate them. It wasn't like her to just _take_, and _kill_.

He had counted on an elaborate, sick game of chess.

This way, he could've planned a way to keep _her_ safe. His Elena, his Queen, his _salvation_.

Suddenly there was a pair of feet in front of him, and as he looked up, Katherine loomed over him.

And as fast as this lost, empty feeling came over him, even more quickly it was replaced with rage.

Clear, undiluted rage, so hot in his veins, that he nearly felt them burning.

Before either of them had realised what had happened, he had her against a tree, hand clamped around her throat, and ready to rip it out at moments notice.

"I hope for you that you gave her your blood before you did _this_. Because, so god help me, if she really _is_ dead – for good - I'll rip you to pieces so tiny, that not even a damn bloodhound will be able to find them all. And don't even _try_ to pull the age card on me. You and me both know what hate can do, my dear, _dear_ Katherine."

For a moment, just half a second, he thought he saw fear in her eyes. But it was gone, instantly replaced by a look of disgust.

"How dare you. How _dare_ you talk to me like this! You think you have a right to be upset? Poor Damon lost his little human plaything."

Her voice would've been mocking, if it weren't for the hand still clamping down on her throat. But by now she was nearly equally as enraged as he.

So she just got his wrist in a tight grip and clamped down until she could hear, and _feel_, the bone shatter.

With a blurring motion she had him on his back, straddling him, this time holding _him_ down by his throat.

"And now _you_ listen to _me_, little boy. You think you lost something tonight? _You_ had a hard night? That was nothing, you hear? _Nothing_. She was of my blood, you _stupid_ son of a bitch. The last one in my line. I looked into her eyes, smelled her, and I saw all those that came before her. Men and women with my blood running through their veins – and it ran strong, Damon.

I _am_ cold hearted, and even a bitch when I want to be. I give you that much. But never, _ever_, would I allow harm to come to those I once had sworn to protect.

And I failed. With her, with the one who looked just like me – the one who proved that I was successful in keeping my family alive… with her I failed.

_She_ came to _me_, Damon. She came, and she _told_ me to kill her. And there was just so much anguish in her voice, such emptiness in her eyes…

She was mine to protect, but I wasn't good enough. And she paid the price for it, so I granted her this _one_ wish she had left.

Now, there is no one left. So don't tell me – don't even _think_ – that you lost more than I."

With that, she came slowly to her feet, looking defeated like he never saw her before.

Not even that night, as she was weak with vervain and about to be burned alive.

After he hadn't found her in the tomb, he was so sure that there was not an _ounce_ of feeling left in her.

And maybe there wasn't – not for him, at least.

But the drawn line of her shoulders, the turmoil in her eyes, showed him she wasn't _just_ the cold hearted bitch she liked to portray.

She had made her way back to Elena, but refrained from sitting back down on the headstone.

Instead she crouched down beside her, gently pushing a stray strand of hair from her forehead.

"She hadn't had anything of my blood Damon. She wanted to sleep, never to wake up again, and I made sure that she got what she wanted. She felt no pain – I was as quick as I could.

I'll go now – I'll leave the town, and I don't think I'll be back anytime soon. Take care of her. Make sure that she gets the funeral she deserves."

With a last look over her shoulder and a regretful smile she was gone.

Left him to deal with his demons; the pain of once again loosing his love. Only this time, there was no back. No tomb to free her from, no hope to cling to.

As he got to his feet every step was slow and careful, like he was walking on glass.

He stood over her for a long time, not daring to touch her; for it would be the last proof that she was gone.

It took another near-eternity for him to finally be able to lift a hand for a careful stroke down the side of her face – and it was everything he feared.

No softly humming pulse under her skin, no warmth… no _life_.

And as he saw tiny droplets of water splashing on her skin, it took him a moment to realise that it _wasn't_ about to rain. He lifted his hand – the one not still on her – and brought it to his own cheek. He nearly laughed out loud then.

For so long there was nothing that could make him feel. At least, not like _this_.

He was still human, the last time he shed a tear. It was a long time before he went to war, even.

But his eyes were wet, and a few of the salty drops even made it down his cheek, to splash softly onto hers.

With a bitter smile he wiped them away – he had no right for them. Elena had never been his.

She was a niece to Jenna, a sister to Jeremy. Best friend for Bonnie and Caroline.

And a boyfriend to his little brother. Even _Matt_ had more rights than him – Matt, the first, innocent love.

So he took a deep breath and picked her up off the ground.

For a moment it reminded him of the night were he got her out of her car.

But this time there would be no 'five minutes'. She wouldn't just sleep for a few hours and demand of him to take her home.

This time, her sleep would be forever.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Now, was I right? Do you hate me? Just let me know, and push the nice little button below^^.

So long,

Zora


	9. Chapter 9

So, I'm back, and this time I've REALLY brought a cliffhanger with me… but I really thought it was best to end the chapter were I did^^.

Thank you, Avecia my dear, for the excellent beta work.

And a bow to all my readers and reviewers.

So, without further ramblings, on with it. (Oh… I still don't own anything about VD)

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

It seemed to take an eternity to get back to the Gilbert house – the term 'tunnel vision' got a whole new meaning for him. It was all he could do to put one foot in front of the other and keep going.

Elena was a dead weight in his arms – literally – and the way her body was all limp was the cruellest thing imaginable. Her head was bent back, and one of her arms dangled down, refusing to stay on top of her.

But the worst were her _eyes_. He should've just closed them, but somehow he just couldn't bring himself to do that. To imagine never seeing them again…

He finally reached the porch of Elena's home and was about to enter it, when he found he was unable to do so.

Taking her inside there would mean to let her out of his arms. And he wasn't ready to do that just yet.

So he laid her down on the bench and scooted her head up, placing it on his lap.

He stroked her hair, pulled the wrinkles out of her clothes and simply watched her. How the hell did that happen? Just yesterday his only problem was that bitch Isobel and her loud mouth.

But now… now everything was confusing, his whole world ripped off its axis, spinning out of control with every passing hour.

"You know, I once thought that I have all the time in the world. I'm a vampire – I don't get older, I don't get sick… if I don't make the wrong enemies, I have eternity at my feet. And it never crossed my mind that the same wasn't true for you. Not _once_. I mean… I always knew you were human… it was painfully obvious, most of the time. But nevertheless the fact that _you_ couldn't cheat on time slipped my mind. So I riled you up, just to see you angry, made jokes so you laughed and tried to be your friend. Because I had all the time I needed – I just had to wait for my brother to slip up again… and be there to pick up the pieces. But this… _this_ I'm not able to repair.

I _really_ love you, you know? I always thought that love was supposed to make everything… easy. But in reality it makes everything that much harder – but you want to try anyway, because in the end it'll be worth it.

But now I'll never know, huh? I'm sorry I couldn't protect you…"

He looked up from Elena's face as he heard the front door open – it was Jeremy.

He still looked very pale, with deep circles under his eyes. But at least he lost the madman glimmer in his eyes, and wasn't raging anymore.

"So… you found her? Why is she asleep out here?"

He noticed the wrinkled paper in Jeremy's hand – he obviously went to investigate after Damon stormed into his room the last time, for the paper was the note Elena had left.

But before he could think how to explain that she wasn't actually sleeping, the boy crossed the few steps between the door and the bench and looked down at his sister.

For the second time that night the little piece of paper fluttered to the floor, as is slipped out of Jeremy's slackened grip.

His eyes were wide – comically so - and his mouth opened and closed a few times, without an understandable word leaving it.

Then he crashed to his knees and took one of Elena's hands into both of his.

The coldness of the skin finally pulled him out of his stupor, and he frantically began to search for a pulse on her wrist.

And Damon just sat and watched, not able to speak any consoling words.

Finally, after a few minutes of trying to get a reaction out of Elena, the boy gave up.

Her hand still clutched in his he broke down in sobs, muttering the occasional 'I'm sorry, I love you, please wake up' along the way.

Damon knew he should do something, anything. Try to talk to him, tell him to slow it down - at this rate, they would alarm the neighbours – or simply go inside with the two of them.

Also, there was this part of him that screamed to just rip the boy apart. Only hours before he practically _told_ Elena to just go and die – but he knew from experience that one never meant any harm to come to a sibling. Not _really_, at least.

So in the end he did nothing. Just let the boy have his breakdown.

An hour later a car pulled up in front of the house – the teacher brought Jenna back home from… wherever he took her.

The only thing he could remember later was a lot of screaming and even more tears – and that he wished, for the first time in forever, that his brother was here.

Stefan would know the right words to soothe the pain of these people. He would be gentle and understanding… would swallow his own anguish and be there for Elena's family.

But he wasn't Stefan – never would be – so he did as best as he could, even if it wasn't nearly enough.

Xoxoxoxo

The rest of the week went by in a blur. Between recounting the night to the teacher and his brother – after said brother was done with breaking everything in the boarding house that was in his reach and having his own mental breakdown – feeding the council a fitting story, act surprised as they found the corpse of John Gilbert and try to stay sober, there wasn't much time to really _think_.

And now he stood at the edge of a freshly dug up grave.

He stood in the front row, right beside Stefan and Elena's family, and tried to listen to what the preacher had to say. But in reality he couldn't care less. He had lost his faith in god a long time ago – if he really existed, he wouldn't be so cruel.

But he spoke up at the right times anyway, and as it was over, he gave his condolences to Jenna and Jeremy and got the hell out of there.

He couldn't stand it even a minute longer. All those people, silently sniffling or even outright crying… None of them knew anything.

But now that this week-from-hell was finally over – no more expectations, no more explaining… now he could finally wallow in his own self-pity.

He flung his tie and coat in a corner, took a random bottle of something that burned his throat, and turned the music to ear-splitting volumes.

xoxoxoxo

He had no idea how he had made his way over here. As the alcohol finally had made it out of his system, he found himself wandering aimlessly through the graveyard.

It was the first time he had left the house since the funeral a few days earlier, but he couldn't find it in him to care.

But as it was in the middle of the night, he could just go to… _her_… and sit there for a while.

The only problem was that he wasn't the only one with that idea.

"What the hell… Bennett?"

Yes, there she was. Bonnie Bennett, sitting inside a circle of candles, on the middle of the grave.

_Candles_?

As he made his way closer to her, he could see that it _wasn't_ just candles.

The ground was cleared off of leaves and other interfering things. And made out of salt, he could make out weird symbols, and the candles gave off a nasty smell.

As a whole, this scene was greatly disturbing.

And the weird, monotonic chanting wasn't helping the matter a single bit.

_Chanting… she isn't doing what I _think_ she is doing… right?_

"Witch."

"…_und gib zurück was du genommen_…*"

„Bennett."

„…_leben nahmst du vor der Zeit_…**"

„_Bonnie_!"

„What? Shut the hell up, I have to concentrate! "

Shaking his head, he tried to take another step closer… only to find that he couldn't.

Somehow her crazy little circle was hindering him to step inside of it.

"…_Blut für Blut, Seele für Seele, ein Opfer sei gebracht_…***"

The wind was picking up, howling nightmarishly around them, but somehow not disturbing the candles' flames.

And the faster the witch chanted, the more frantic he got. He _knew_ what she was doing.

It didn't matter that he couldn't understand a _word_ she was saying. Sitting by the grave of her best friend, in the middle of the night, chanting in a foreign language?

_Not_ gonna end good.

"Listen wi… _Bonnie_. I want her back, too. God knows I do. But this is… you can't _do_ this! You can't disturb the sleep of the dead! It's not meant to be. No matter what you bring back… it would _not_ be Elena."

"…_hör was ich sage, hör was ich will…****_"

By now he was pounding on the invisible barrier in front of him. He couldn't let her do this. Whatever would come out of this grave, he'll have to fight it… and he wasn't sure he could fight something that once was Elena.

"Bonnie, _please_, don't."

But she just ignored him, and opened a clay urn. Instantly he could smell blood – the first time in his life glad it was animal, and _not_ human.

With a gaze over her shoulder, eyes aflame with hope and desperation, she upended the urn.

The moment the blood splashed on the ground, the wind picked up, blew out the candles, and both him and Bonnie from their feet.

His head pounding – he must have hit it on something on his way down – he tried to stand up again.

He had to see with his own eyes what Bonnie had done.

But as he straightened up, the pounding got only worse. It had an odd, rhythmic… sound to it, pulsing in his temple and behind his eyes, and it made him so dizzy, that he had to sit down again.

He tried to see something, anything, but it was as if his whole being was packed in cotton wool.

He could see nearly to nothing, and the only thing he could hear was this odd pulsing – as if he had his head pressed right above a beating… heart.

"Oh hell…"

Was the last thing he said as everything got too much, and he was surrounded by sweet, all-encompassing blackness as he passed out.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Translations (If you haven't guessed by now, her spell is in German):

*…_und gib zurück was du genommen_… - …and give back what you took…

**…_leben nahmst du vor der Zeit_… - …life you've taken before the time…

***…_Blut für Blut, Seele für Seele, ein Opfer sei gebracht_… -… Blood for blood, soul for a soul, a sacrifice shall be made…

_****…hör was ich sage, hör was ich will__… -… hear what I say, hear what I want…_

Well, I've done my part, and now all you have to do is click on the little button and tell me what you think of this chapter^^.

So long,

Zora


	10. Chapter 10

I'm already back^^. Guess now that I really like my plot, it's way easier to write, so I was faster then usual…Right, so, I think this chapter is a BIT boring, but it is necessary, so please, bear with me.

As always, a huge 'thank you' goes to Avecia for her great beta work, and also to my readers and reviewer – you are AMAZING guys.

Now, I (still) don't own anything about VD. Just having fun messing with them^^.

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

As he opened his eyes again, everything was way too bright, and the sounds around him, though muffled so he couldn't understand a single word, were so loud in his ears that it hurt.

He was no longer on the ground – his surroundings were too warm for that, plus, he could feel the softness of some sort of bed or couch under him.

But, for the hell of him, he had no idea where _exactly_ he was.

Then a dark head was in front of the insufferable garish light above him.

Chocolate skin, dark eyes and hair… he _knew_ this girl… woman?... but he couldn't put a name to her.

She was speaking now and looked slightly worried.

That was the first thing that clued him in that something was _not_ right – at all.

For even if he couldn't remember anything (not even his own name, at the moment) he knew that this woman would _never_ be concerned about him.

As his brain started working at a faster pace than a damn slug – finally – he realized that this unusual feeling towards him wasn't the only thing out of place.

He felt incredibly weak, couldn't even lift his hand up as he tried. His head was still pounding in this heartbeat-like rhythm and there was something stuck in his throat.

The woman was still talking to him, babbling nonsense about a spell gone wrong and being sorry about him being… human?

And then, suddenly, it all came back.

Katherine, kissing him on Elena's porch, Elena disappearing. This incredibly frustrating paper hunt through the night.

Elena, lying on the ground with unseeing eyes. Elena, not breathing. Elena _dead_.

Her funeral, and then a few black days he spent drinking and drowning in this whole nightmare and then… Bonnie.

Right by Elena's grave, sitting and chanting and being an all-round general nuisance.

A blast of wind that knocked him from his feet and… his heart, beating again. Beating after 146 years of lying forgotten in his chest.

He began to panic, then.

His eyes wide, he tried to sit up, but _couldn't_, because damn, he was still _weak_.

To top it all off, he was choking on this thing in his throat, and some machine or another was making one hell of a ruckus somewhere near him.

The dark head – _Bonnie_, he remembered now – was gone, replaced by that of a balding man, saying something about relaxing and don't panicking.

But it didn't matter anyway, because the next thing he new, blackness drew him in again, pulled him under, and he _embraced_ the chance to flee this surreal moment.

Xoxoxoxoxoxox

The next time he woke up he wasn't nearly as confused. He knew he was in a hospital, knew that the witch somehow had made him human again.

Luckily, this time there was nothing choking him, and the lights weren't all that bright either.

To his left was a window, and the darkness with the moon told him it was in the middle of the night.

He sighed, already tired of this new, sick twist of fate.

Trying to sit up proved to be more fruitful this time around, and soon he had his back against the headpiece of the bed, checking out his surroundings more thoroughly.

It was a plain and simple hospital room – beige walls, linoleum floor. Beside the window were a table and a few chairs, and across from him was a tiny TV mounted on a frame.

It was showing some gardening show or the other, the sound on mute.

He was hooked up to a few machines, telling him that, _yes_, his heart _really_ was beating.

_Well, damn._

He was tempted to rip the sensors for the machines – and the IV in his left arm – out, but thought it wasn't worth the trouble it would bring.

Instead, he tried to figure out what _exactly_ the witch had done to him.

There was the beating heart, and the fact he had to breath (he tested that theory, and _not_ breathing just made him dizzy, and his entire chest hurt).

But he also was able to hear snippets of conversations outside of his room, and he was fairly certain he hadn't heard this good the _last_ time he was human.

The antiseptic smell that clung _everywhere_ stung in his nose, but not quite as much as it did only a few weeks back

The colors around him were duller than he was used to, but he still could make out everything perfectly fine – again, something he wasn't able to do 150 year ago.

He nearly stood up to test speed and strength, then, but remembered the damn machines.

Silently grumbling, he contemplated what to do next, as the door was pushed open – and in came Bonnie and Stefan.

They walked slowly, each a cup of… something… in their hands, talking and not even looking his way.

"You know, if you just came in to ignore me, I can go and leave you two to…"

Stefan let go of his cup and had him in a hug even before it landed on the floor, spilling its contents on the previously shining floor.

And he just sat there, back straight and arms by his side, not knowing what to do.

Because, seriously? He was beginning to think that the witch hadn't made him human, but simply stored him away in another _reality_.

"Whoa, yeah… easy there. Stefan? _Stefan_! You can let go. Like, _now!_"

His brother straightened up again, looking slightly embarrassed, but not really as if he regretted anything.

"Sorry. I just… wasn't counting on seeing you awake anytime soon… I guess."

He was betting that Stefan would closely resemble a tomato by now – if he could blush, that is.

But as it was, he simply scratched the back of his head, and gave a crooked smile.

_Not waking up anytime soon? _

"About that… how long _exactly_ was I out of it? I remember waking up for a few minutes but…"

And if he sounded not all like himself at the moment? He could always pretend it was the magic still messing with his mind.

By now both Bonnie and Stefan looked a bit unsure. It wasn't a look destined to _not_ worry him.

"Yeah well, there was… I mean you…"

It had been awhile since he heard his brother stutter. And in front of him, no less. They always avoided sounding _weak_, or _vulnerable_ in front of the other.

So he gritted his teeth, narrowed his eyes, and asked again.

"_How. Long_?"

Taking a deep breath Bonnie pulled Stefan aside, standing in his place and looked him directly in the eyes.

"Two and a half months… Ten weeks and three days, to be exactly."

_That_ was unexpected. He thought it might've been a few _days_ – maximum.

But _ten weeks_?

The shock must've registered on his face, because Bonnie sat down on his bed and took his hand in hers.

He blinked at this, not knowing how to react in this weird twilight zone that this was turning out to be.

He didn't try to loose her grip, more curious about what would happen next.

"What's the last thing you _really_ remember?"

Well, that was an easy question.

"You, going all '_Willow Rosenberg_', trying to raise the dead. What the _hell_ did you think you were _doing_?"

He hadn't planned on lashing out right at that moment, but it… seemed the thing to do.

He did pretty good at pretending that _she_ wasn't gone… right until the point were he had to think about it.

Taking a deep breath he tried to get his emotions back in check – this was _way_ easier as he still had that nifty little button.

"Okay. Don't answer that question. Not really necessary, anyway. Just... tell me how the hell I managed to sleep for_ ten fucking weeks_."

Bonnie nodded slowly and seemed to bring her thoughts into order before she answered him.

"So, okay. You _did_ wake up before now. And that was right after we arrived here.

You weren't breathing on you own – guess your body was used to _not_ needing the oxygen – so they put a tube down your throat. You were awake for only a few minutes, and you were pretty out of it the whole time.

From then on everything went kind of… downhill, I guess.

You had all kinds of nasty reactions to the medication they gave you, and your immune system well… it checked out on you.

Pretty normal when you think about it – I mean, you never had to get used to modern medication. Or bacteria and diseases, as it is. The staff here had no idea what was wrong.

The first three weeks they – and _we_ – thought you wouldn't make it.

But you're nothing if not stubborn so… you started breathing on your own again, the fever you were running _constantly_ broke… but you just wouldn't wake up.

Story in a nutshell? You were in a coma for ten weeks, and we nearly lost all hope by now."

And was it only _him_, or had she sounded guilty at that?

He was about to answer… or ask another question (he wasn't really sure which one) as he had to yawn.

Only now he realized how... exhausted he was. Despite sleeping for an insane amount of time.

As he was done, Bonnie was standing already.

"Right. You have to be tired. We'll… just go now, let you sleep. It _is_ in the middle of the night, after all."

Before he could protest (damn it, just because he was _human_ again, didn't mean he was a weakling all of a sudden) Stefan gave him another hug (irritating, strange, confusing…), picked up the fallen Styrofoam cup and said his goodbyes, taking Bonnie with him.

After a few minutes he laid back down again – there was nothing he could do at the moment.

And that he closed his eyes wasn't because he was tired.

_I'm just bored, damn it._

He was asleep in less then two minutes, never once noticing the sad eyes watching him from a tree outside of his window.

Xoxoxox

So, finished – for today, at least^^. Can you guess who is outside, lurking in the shadows?

Click on the little button below and let me know what you think!

So long,

Zora


	11. Chapter 11

Well, that was a fast update, right?

BUT, it's only so fast, because I'm not gonna be able to update ANYTHING the whole next week, because I'm not actually at home – or anywhere near a computer, as it is.

I hope I'll get to write while I'm gone (even if I have to do it with pen and paper! And copy it on the computer when I'm back) to give you an update as soon as I'm back.

Now: As always, a biiiig thank you for Avecia – she really has a lot to do these past few days, because of me. You are GREAT sweety!

And another thank you, to all my readers and reviewers, you are GREAT.

Oh, and I don't own anything 'bout VD.

Now, on with it, or else I'll ramble you to sleep *gg*

xoxoxoxoxoxo

Two days had gone by since he woke up, and he was this close to just ripping a few throats out and be done with it.

Stupid doctors, trying to find out why he had recovered – and why he'd gotten sick and fell into a coma in the first place.

He was tempted to just tell them that a witch had screwed up a spell and turned him from a vampire into a human… but he figured a mental institution would grate even more on his nerves. So he just let them draw his blood and participated in their stupid tests.

At least they decided those infuriating machines weren't necessary anymore.

At the moment he was in bed (he missed his nice, _big_, four-poster bed with the heavy curtains, and the soft mattress… this thing was a _joke) _zapping through the whole of _8 channels_. Pathetic.

The only reason he was still here, was because the idea of being alone in a house with his brother was…disturbing.

He acted like the last 140 and a few odd years hadn't happened.

Like they were still just Stefan and Damon, not only brothers, but best friends as well.

And he just couldn't figure out _why_.

He had expected a rant of how unfair this all was. Damon, getting to be alive, and human again, whilst he was stuck with his fangs and bloodlust.

Christ, as if it had been _his_ idea that that happened.

He was pulled out of his musings, as he heard a silent knock on the door, closely followed by the opening of said door.

He sighed and waited for Stefan's figure of to walk in, but was surprised to see Bonnie instead.

She gave a tentative smile as she saw that he was here, and awake, before she walked in and closed the door behind her.

"Hey. Uhm… Are you….how are you?"

He rolled his eyes, and with a click on the remote, switched the TV off.

"I'm alright. But I think you hit your head; or screwed _another_ spell up.

You're acting nice. Stop it, it's creeping me out."

The witch blinked a few times before she sighed and let her shoulders slump forwards.

She stood there about half a minute, seemingly deep in thought. The she walked over and sat down in the chair by his bed.

"Look, Damon… we both know you're not my favourite person in the world."

He snorted at that, amused at how she put it. Because 'not her favourite person'? Understatement of the _century_.

Other than that, he kept his mouth shut, curious were she was going with this.

"But as I woke up in the graveyard… The first thing I noticed, was that… was that the grave was still undisturbed. And… _she_… was nowhere in sight. At first I thought I just wasn't strong enough to pull off this kind of spell but… then I heard something. _Someone_. You were lying a few feet behind me, on your back. Your eyes were open, but I don't think that you registered anything. You just lay there, and you were gasping for breath, stopping every once in a while.

You were really pale… I first thought that someone attacked you and pumped you full of vervain.

I tried to get you to notice me, but you weren't reacting at my voice, so I slapped you… and your skin was way too warm under my hand. I wasn't thinking about how, as a vampire, you wouldn't have a pulse, so I took your wrist – simple reaction.

But you actually _had_ one.

That was when I realized that I hadn't failed my spell. I just… brought the wrong person back to life.

Because, you know… the spell was for _'bringing to life, what once was dead'_. And, technically, you were dead at the time. No breathing, no beating heart… so it somehow targeted you and… here we are."

He mulled that over for a moment, not really surprised at what she had said. He had thought that it was something like that.

"Yeah, well… I already guessed that much. That doesn't explain why you're acting all _Florence Nightingale_ all of a sudden.

Just a short while ago you were perfectly fine with the idea of letting me burn to death…. Otherwise, you would have disabled the Gilbert device. And I don't see what could have happened for you to change your mind. Not really. I have a beating heart…doesn't mean I'm a new, _better_ person now. Nothing has changed."

Bonnie just shook her head, and heaved an exasperated sigh.

"You don't understand, do you? _Everything_ has changed, Damon. You were out of it the whole time… you hadn't seen the way how first your lips, than your whole _face_ turned blue.

It was one thing to let John Gilbert do the dirty work… but to actually be there, and _watch_ someone die? It was horrible. And then you just… every few minutes the heart monitor would flare up, voicing that something, _again_, wasn't right and you just. Never .woke .up!

Just lying in bed, slowly slipping away. And it was my fault! If I had been a better friend to Elena, maybe she wouldn't have gone to Katherine. She would still be here, and I hadn't tried that spell.

Everything would be _fine_. But it isn't and… I don't have it in me to hate someone else but me at the moment. Now, I'm here. And I want to know how you are. Because I have to atone, and I have to start _somewhere_. So, spill."

At first he wanted to laugh at her. Then the feeling to scream and lash out came over him. But that wouldn't last, either. In the end, he just gave in. He wasn't able to shut out his emotions any longer – that option died, the moment his heart started beating again. And to bury them inside could only last that long, before he would just _burst_.

So he told the witch, Elena's best friend… everything.

How it nearly ripped him apart, arriving in the graveyard, only to find her already dead.

How he never, in all his life, felt so helpless than in the moment were he had to explain to her family what happened.

He told her everything, never once thinking about how he irrevocably ruined his image.

And just like this, there was a fragile, strange friendship between the two of them.

She came back everyday, sometimes to listen, sometimes to talk. When they both weren't in the mood to do either, they just sat there and watched TV or read a book.

They both had lost something too dear to their heart to hold on to petty grudges.

He wasn't sure if he was up to living a human life. A human life, with all its emotions – most of them revolving around the fact that he had lost the one person he thought it would be worth this… complication.

But he tried, anyway. It's what he always had done.

Xoxoxoxoxox

She sat outside of his window once again, careful to not make any sounds or harsh movements.

It started out as the need to know if he would survive. Now she was just curious.

Curious, how he would handle it, being like this. Being what he once saw as prey.

She was surprised that he never, not _once_, really lashed out on Bonnie.

There were harsh words, sure. But they were few, and far between.

On the day he got released, she was hiding in the parking lot, watching as Stefan rambled on about how he had stocked up actual _food_ and other random stuff.

She noticed how Damon and Bonnie seemed to depend on each other… holding the other upright – figuratively - as if the weight of the whole world would crush them otherwise.

Stefan didn't seem to notice. Just glad to have a chance to have his brother back… his _real_ brother, not this cruel caricature he had been for so long.

Turn the page over, and begin anew. He didn't seem to mind the sarcastic jabs or occasional mocking.

In reality – she could see it in his sad, _sad_ green eyes; he just clung to the last familiar thing in his life.

Because, when it came down to it, Damon was the only thing constant in his existence.

They all scrambled into the car, and soon drove off.

Yeah, Damon was the last thing left for his brother.

Because _she_ was supposed to be dead. At least, the whole world thought so.

And she would see to it that it would stay this way.

Xoxoxoxxoxoxo

I hope you liked this chapter! Let me know what you think – you just have to click on the nice button below^^.

So long,

Zora


	12. Chapter 12

So, I'm back from my little trip – and as I promised, I wrote everyday^^. So there you go, a new chapter. Sadly, Damon isn't in this one – not really, just a few side notes. This is purely a chapter for the friendship of Bonnie and Elena (or what's left of it).

Now, as always a HUGE thank you to Avecia, my sweet beta. You're the BEST^^.

And then, to my readers. AND my reviewers (you make my days, people!).

So, I don't own anything about VD, and don't GET anything for messing with them.

OH, and I'll ignore the new season in this story (even if the start was incredible and had me reeling for HOURS on end).

Now, on with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

As Bonnie closed the door to her house behind her, she heaved a sigh of gratitude. She had spent the whole day with a fellow witch, trying to find a way to reverse a permanent spell. Of course with it being _permanent_ that was easier said than done. Also, she couldn't just blurt out what kind of spell it had been. To imagine the trouble she – and Damon – would be in, if it came out that she had turned a vampire human; or at least, into something closely _resembling _human for he still had a few traits of those bloodsucking demons left.

His senses were still _way_ better than should be possible, and he was just as fast and strong as before her spell – as he found out that he _still_ could throw his brother against walls, he grinned like a madman. It only saddened her that this grin hadn't lasted more than a few seconds.

It's true that she had hated vampire-Damon (and _boy_ was she glad that he couldn't use his compulsion any longer – or that he lost his fangs and the growly- face).

It didn't matter that Elena always tried to tell her that he _wasn't _just a self-serving, murdering, _infuriating_ psychopath. She never believed it. But after everything that had happened, she just hadn't had it in her to hate him any longer.

So she divided her time between school, trying to find a way to make him a vampire again (they wouldn't try to just give him vampire blood and snap his neck – somehow they all doubted it would be that easy) and spending time with him.

It was kind of masochistic what they did, really. Spending so much time together just reminded them of what they had lost - and that was most certainly _not _healthy.

She could just let him be. Let him wander aimlessly through the big boarding house, lost to the world around him – because that was all he seemed to be doing most of this days.

It would be the less painful solution – not to be reminded what they _both_ had lost. And that she stripped him of his only solution to this kind of heartache, because _surely_ it would be better if he could turn his emotions off again.

She rather would have him sarcastic, obnoxious, rude and _dangerous_, than this catatonic _puppet _he was half of the time now.

With _dangerous_ she could work – a few well placed threats and a reminder that she had been powerful enough to make him ‚human' and her town would be safe – well, as safe as it could get, knowing its track record.

Leaving her jacket, shoes and purse on a side table beside the front door, she went upstairs, glad this day was finally over. In her room, she put on the light and went to her vanity to take out her earrings, as she heard a voice behind her.

"You know, with the life you lead – and the people you know – you should really start to be more paranoid. Entering a room and _not_ making sure you're not the only one in it? It's _bound_ to get you killed, sooner or later."

At first Bonnie just stood there, too shocked to say or do anything.

There were so many thoughts running riot in her head, that she had difficulty sorting through them.

"I haven't invited you in. You can't be _in _here… Damon said you had left town…"

The woman on the bed looked confused for a moment, but then she seemed to realize something.

"First: I don't _need_ an invitation to come inside. I'm not a vampire – not exactly.

Second: I think you got something _else_ mixed up. I'm not Katherine, either."

There was atmosphere so strong hanging over the room that one could nearly cut it with a knife.

Then Bonnie bounced forward and had the other woman in a tight hug.

She hadn't even thought that it could really be Katherine, just messing with her mind.

And as she – _Elena_ – reciprocated the hug, she couldn't hold back the tears that had threatened to come since she'd caught a look at the oh-so-familiar figure on her bed.

After a while she pulled away again – even as everything in her just wanted to _stay where the hell she was_ - to look more thoroughly at her friend.

"My god, Elena you… you're here! You look so… so…"

"Try '_you look so _alive_, Elena_'. I think that would be quite appropriate."

Bonnie was – again – at a loss for words.

In all her joy of seeing her best friend again, she had forgotten how it should be _impossible_ for her to be here.

"Oh… OH! Yeah, you… how?"

Elena just patted the bed beside her, telling Bonnie to take a seat without actually using words.

"I know that Damon told you what had happened that night. How I died, and how it was my own decision.

And _I_ was there as you told _him_ what had happened after you were done with your spell. So… there's no need for either of us to go there. Now, for why I'm alive… I'm gonna tell you what I know, but please don't interrupt me, just listen, 'kay?"

Bonnie nodded, eager to know why Elena was back again – so she could go back to hugging her.

"Alright, so… the first thing I actually remember after I lost consciousness is waking up in a room with way too much light. First there were voices, all of them speaking too fast, too loud, or in languages I couldn't understand. I saw glimpses of people, too.

It took a while till everything sorted itself out.

Then there was Jeremy, on his knees, telling my corpse he's sorry. Or Jenna, tired, wearing black and in tears. This one time I even saw Caroline, sitting in her hospital bed, pale, crying and sobbing.

I visited all of you, at one time.

But, like I said, that were just glimpses.

Then suddenly, the multitude of voices stopped, the light wasn't all that garish anymore, and the air around me was somehow crackling – like electricity.

Then it became like in one of those _really_ horrible movies of the afterlife – the voice that told me my '_little witch friend didn't want to let me rest quite yet_' hadn't made it any less like one.

The next thing I know, I'm lying right on top of my own grave.

_That_ was really disturbing, by the way… looking at my own damn headstone.

Luckily, I wasn't naked or something like that – it would've fit right into the bad-movie-cliché though.

So, I was back and didn't _really_ know how… I _also_ knew that I couldn't just walk home. I was supposed to be dead – hell, I had already been _buried_.

But there was this pull in my chest… like I had forgotten an important date, and my body was trying to remind me of it.

So I went were it lead me… right to the hospital, and into Damons room.

I was shocked to see him like that, to say the least.

So I just… took off and ran.

It was my luck that my panic-run brought me right into Katherines arms, really.

First, she was just as confused as me. So she went back here, listened in to a few conversations, and figured everything out.

I don't really know why, but she kind of took care of me.

She showed me how to use speed without knocking down trees; to regulate my strength… things like that.

I came back here, every time I could. Sat in the tree outside of Damon's room, or tracked Jeremy and Jenna.

I just wasn't able to bring myself to go to them. It had hurt – still does – to remember the things Jeremy said and… I thought it better this way. And now I'm here. I'm here to say goodbye, and to ask you a few favors."

After her monologue, Elena took a deep breath, and leaned back against the headboard, signaling that she was done speaking.

And Bonnie just sat there, blinking owlishly, trying to process everything she had heard.

"Okay… good, just to make sure I got this right: you woke up… _somewhere_ in a sort-of afterlife. Had a few glimpses down to us living, _then_ came back – because of my spell – and ran away. Right into Katherine. Who helped you, the whole time?"

"That sounds about right, yeah."

More blinking from Bonnie, and a patient face from Elena.

"So. I know there should be other things on my mind right now. Like, how my best friend isn't _dead_ anymore but… what did you mean with _strength,_ _speed_ and _things like that_? Aren't you… human?"

Now Elena sighed, her expression turning from neutral to frustrated.

"I have no idea _what_ I am. I _know_ I'm not a vampire. Or a brain-munching-zombie, for that matter. But I'm not entirely human, either.

I'm really fast and strong, have these _incredible_ senses… that's not all, but the rest I'm still figuring out for myself.

But I have no inclination to sink my teeth into a neck and take a sip.

So… no idea what I am, but I'm on it. As is Katherine."

Bonnie suddenly looked really drawn and tired.

"What… I made Damon human and you… _un_-human?"

At this Elena had to giggle. It was just like Bonnie to actually say everything that mattered out loud – but to not get it, at the same time.

"No, Bonnie. You hadn't done a thing to us _separately_. Katherine thinks that you took a little of Damons…life force, and gave it to me.

He's not a vampire anymore, as I'm no longer human. We are _both_ just something in-between. And I think I got a few strange presents from my trip to the land of dead as well. But these are the parts I'm still 'trying to figure out'. But…as we're already discussing this…I ask my favors now:

Please stop searching for a way to reverse your spell. It could either just send me back into my grave… or it could just as easily kill _Damon_, and leave me with _all_ his vampire traits.

The other: As I said, I'm here to say goodbye. I'm leaving town – I'm leaving this _country_ – and I don't know when, or even _if_ - I'll be back. So. Please tell Damon I'm alright. And _only_ Damon. At the moment I'm just not fond enough of Jeremy to ease _his_ conscience and Jenna will be okay, with a little more time. As will Stefan, Caroline and everyone else.

But Damon looks like he's slowly falling apart, so please tell him everything will be fine. That I'm still out there… and tell him I'll be in contact, as soon as I can.

And that he should keep this a secret between the two of you. Can you do that? Please?"

Bonnie took a moment to go over everything Elena said, before she nodded.

"I'll do it. You're my best friend, and I let you down, so I promise to do everything you asked of me. But… are you sure you want to go? You could just… stay here. I'll help you figure everything out."

"No. It would be nice to be with friends again, but my place isn't here in Mystic Falls anymore. I have to go – and I have to do it _now_ before I change my mind. So… please don't search for me. I'll come to you, when I'm ready. Goodbye."

Then she gave Bonnie a final hug, and with an incredible show of speed, was out the window and gone.

Xoxoxxoxxo

Hope that wasn't too boring. But it had to be like this, trust me!

Now, I've done my part, now PLEASE click on the little button below, and let me know if you (dis)liked it!

So long,

Zora


	13. Chapter 13

The 13th chapter already! I can't quite believe it… I mean, this story was originally meant to be a ONESHOT, *lol*.

Other than that: Avecia, my dear, you have outdone yourself with your betawork, this time *HUGS*.

And a big thank you to my readers, and especially my reviewers: guys, you are the BEST, you are constantly making my day^^.

So, I don't own anything about the VD, I'm just messing around.

NO spoilers for season two in this – and if there are, it's not on purpose.

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

As he opened the front door of the boarding house, he had to blink a few times to get his eyes to adjust to the bright sunshine outside.

In the three weeks he had been released from the hospital, he only ever had left the house to visit Elena.

Stefan made sure that there was always enough to eat in the house, and Bonnie provided much needed company _besides_ his brother. It was nice enough to be able to talk to him again – talk without hate and regret and all kinds of negative feelings lacing every conversation.

But he could only take so much of Stefans worried glances and thinly veiled attempts to distract him from the downwards spiral he was on

And, as weird as it sounded, he started to look forward to Bonnies visits.

They won't talk much – no deep conversations, no platitudes, and no '_life will go on's_'.

Stefan had managed to push all thoughts of Elena to the back of his mind.

His brother had reconciled himself with the fact that, one day, he was gonna loose her to death.

He never would have even _contemplated_ turning this perfectly _human_ being into something dark and twisted like they were.

Her death came sooner than anticipated and, sure, he mourned her, but not nearly as much as he should.

So lost in his own thoughts, he had made his way to the graveyard without even noticing.

As he came near enough to his destination to be able to see it, his lips quirked up, just a bit.

Just like at that night, the place was already occupied – with Bonnie.

He made sure to make some noise – dragging his feet through leaves and stepping on a few branches so as not to startle her.

She turned her head slightly to the side, just enough to be able to see him out of her peripheral vision and made room for him on the blanket she had brought.

For a while they just sat there, staring at the gold lettering on the stone.

Him, wishing that her name never had to be put upon it, and she, contemplating how to tell him that they no longer rang true.

Her best friend had died – nothing to argue about this – but she wasn't _dead_ anymore.

"What's wrong with you today? You look kind of sick. Like you're about to give a speech in front of a full football stadium or something."

Bonnie lifted one of her eyebrows (a gesture she had copied from Damon himself – even if she would never confess to it) and shook her head.

"If only… listen Damon, there's…. I have to tell you something and I don't quite know were to start."

"I figured that much. What with the broody faces and how you've been avoiding me all week. So, shoot, what is it? Can't reverse the spell? You know, I _told_ you that that wouldn't be possible."

She was glad to hear a bit of sarcasm in his words, even if she knew that it was all show. He tried to keep it together, tried to seem collected and at peace. But no matter what, his eyes were always empty. Like someone switched off a light inside of them.

Because even as she still had hated him, she had always been fascinated by how _alive_ they were.

He might've been cruel and an asshole, but he loved his life, and lived it to its fullest.

Even while pining after Katherine – always trying to find a way to save her from the prison he believed her to be in – he never forgot how to have fun.

But now he was just going through the motions. Never joking around, or flirting. No rude comments, _nothing_. Just the occasional jabs to Stefan and a '_little witch_' here and there to her.

It had been nearly a week since Elenas visit, and she couldn't postpone this any longer.

"This isn't about reversing the spell… although I won't be trying to do it anymore.

I had a visitor last week and it… kind of threw me for awhile.

I don't know why I hadn't told you already… this is gonna make you _happy_. It's just…alright, here it goes: As I came home last Thursday, there was someone waiting for me in my room.

I thought at first it was Katherine but actually… it wasn't. Damon… Elena was sitting on my bed. She was alive, and well, and she told me to let you know."

She knew that it was a little bit abrupt, but she had no inclination to beating around the bush – not anymore.

Damon just sat there, trying to comprehend what the witch had said.

"Bonnie…not to break your little bubble but… we're sitting in a graveyard, in front of _Elena's grave_. She's been dead for _over three months_ now… there's no way that she suddenly woke up. Not even with vampires, witches and god knows what else in this world."

And as she knew there wasn't a way that she could make him understand with simple words, she took his hand in both of hers (she's been doing that a lot lately… it helped her guilt, feeling his hand warm and alive) closed her eyes, concentrated and let him see her memories of that night.

As it was done, she let go of him again, but he wasn't moving a single muscle. Just stared straight ahead, still reeling.

After a few minutes of this, he suddenly threw his head back and laughed.

He laughed hard and loud, and it came from deep, _deep_ inside of him.

All the pain and regret, every _what if_ and _if only _broke free.

And for the second time since he could remember he had tears running down his face.

But this time, they were out of joy and wonder, and all the other right reasons.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

It had been two weeks since the day Bonnie told him that Elena was still out there.

Two weeks in which he practically had to _force_ himself to not pack a few things and start looking for her.

But it's what she wanted, for them to let her go, and he would respect that. He just wished that she would hurry up and call or write or even _e-mail_ him already.

And as he waited for that to happen, he began to live his life again.

He visited a few council meetings, spent the odd night drinking with the teacher (it was strange how he could go from wanting to throttle the man, to laughing at a geeky not-at-all funny remark from him) and made sure to keep tabs on the Gilbert boy.

He had the disturbing drive to make sure that he would be okay.

So far he's been doing… not exactly okay, but at least he wasn't back on any drugs (or trying to kill or change himself again, or whatever).

He left the house in the morning, went to school, and right back home when it let out in the afternoon.

He never went out, and, as far as he had gathered, won't talk much, either.

Damon's guess was that the boy was making an effort to improve his marks in school and _not_ be a jerk – for the sake of his sister, who always wanted that he would just get his life back into order.

But all this was far, far away at the moment, because just three minutes ago, he went to get the mail inside.

And there in his hands was an envelope. It wasn't an eye-catcher or anything. Simple and plain white, with his name and the address of the boardinghouse on the front. But he recognized the writing – he had lost count at how often he had read the diary she had left for him.

He left everything else were it was, not even bothering to shut the mailbox, and blurred into the house, up to his room and firmly shut and locked his door.

Only then did he take a deep breath, sat down on his bed, and slowly opened the envelope.

Inside of it, were a neatly folded letter and a beautiful postcard of Lhasa, China.

The backside simply read _'sorry that you had to wait so long'. _ Nothing else; no greeting, no signature.

He laid the postcard on the bed beside him and slowly, nearly tenderly unfolded the letter.

_Hey there,_

_I know, that's a crappy line to begin with, but I always was bad with beginnings (and with endings, as it is)._

_I'm sure Bonnie told you by now what happened, right? So I won't explain it again, but use this letter to say other, more important things instead._

_Like__ how sorry I am that I had let you believe that I'm really dead._

_I should have visited you as soon as I saw you awake, but I couldn't. I was too much of a coward I guess. Because I just went and let myself be killed. I ran away and left you with the consequences._

_I know now how wrong it was, but that won't change what happened. So I apologize for it, and hope you can forgive me._

_Also, I'm thanking you that there isn't a search party, right on my heels._

I_ can't be sure about that, but Katherine obviously has connections, and she assured me that, apart from you and Bonnie, __everyone__ is __none__ the wiser in Mystic Falls._

_And yeah, she's still with me. I think she's as eager as I am (if not more so) to find out what I am now. Guess she doesn't like _not_ knowing something. But that's okay… she's been a great help, so far. It's really a task with her sometimes though – she can be like a little girl one moment, and like a psycho the next; but I think I kind of like her. I'm not _sure_ I do, but I think so, at least.. We'll see._

_So… as you saw on the postcard, we're in China right now… don't ask me why. Something or another about how it's an old, oooold culture, and they're bound to know more about strange magical phenomenons than the people at home._

_I just tag along at the moment, trying not to scare myself when I set something on fire just by looking at it (don't ask… strange gifts from the afterlife. Without a damn manual __I should add__. NOT nice)._

_Now, I have to hurry, because we have an appointment with some old witches, and Katherine doesn't want to let them wait._

_I'll write soon!_

_Love, Elena._

After he had read the letter, he just stared at it for a few moments, before he grinned.

That was more like her. Taking everything in stride, and nagging about the hot-cold temperament of Katherine. No more giving up.

She was really okay. _And_ she had an old and dangerous vampiress to protect her.

She wasn't here – he couldn't look out for her, or hold her or simply be there for her.

But she was okay, so he could live with it.

Looking at the postcard, he stood up and made his way over to his desk, picking up a pin and looking around his room.

With a firm nod he walked back to his bed, and pinned the card right over the headpiece.

xoxoxoxoxoxo

Stefan just shook his head. His brother was, slowly but surely, going crazy. Yesterday he caught him whistling while he cooked. And if it were _just_ the whistling or cooking – _separately_ – it wouldn't be _that_ bad. But he had made dinner for Bonnie, Jeremy, Jenna and Alaric. He had actually _invited_ them to dinner at the boarding house.

It all had started with these letters. In the last seven months, he got one each week.

In some of them were postcards, every time from a different city or country or even _continent_.

He had no idea who wrote these letters (he first thought it might be Katherine, but he couldn't see _that_ happening; not for his life), but he was thankful for them, nonetheless.

His brother was _living_ again, not just existing. It just scared him how…_nice_ he was sometimes, now.

Shaking his head again – Damon just came home from where ever, and had actually a _bounce_ in his step – he went up to his room, leaving the mystery that was his brother these days to another day.

Xoxoxoxoxo

_**6 years later**_

Stefan had the new letter from _Lady unbeknownst_ (that was the name he gave her - it _had_ to be a woman, for Damon to be so exited about them, even after all this time) in his hands for the whole of ten seconds, before Damon plucked it out of them and disappeared into the living room with it.

He watched as his brother ripped the envelope open (he had stopped being careful with the outer shells a few years back – the only thing that counted was _inside_, after all) and pulled another postcard and letter out of it.

He held the card up without questioning – it was a ritual by now (has gotten one as Damon caught him sneaking around in his room, trying to find out who wrote the letters). It quenched his curiosity a little – to know were the letter came from, this time.

It was Milan, Italy. He lifted his brows… Milan seemed a strange place for Damons little pen pal. Usually she visited less known places.

He was ripped out of his musings as his brother shot up off the couch and stared at his letter with wide eyes.

"Hey… what's up? Everything alright?"

Damon just grinned, turned and generally looked like the cat that got the cream.

"Nope. She said to watch for strange things. Heard rumors that something's about to happen here. Something bad."

Stefan blinked and looked at him like he lost his mind.

"Right and… why are you grinning like a madman, then?"

"Don't know. Guess I got bored with everything running so smoothly lately."

Then he just turned around, took the postcard out of Stefans hands, and went up to his room.

After closing his door, he put his newest letter into the chest with all the others, before he pinned the postcard on the wall. With the hundreds of others already there, his room was way more colorful than he ever thought possible for him.

But it didn't matter, for his life was about to get interesting again.

_That, and the fact that __with__ something threatening the peace in this town __must__ mean that she's coming home._

Xoxoxoxoxo

So, I know this was quite the time jump. BUT I would have bored myself to death, if I had written the whole process of Elena learning how to deal with what she is now. We'll be getting the short version of it, when she explains it to Damon^^.

Now, let me know what you think – you just have to click on the little button below.

Reviews are LOVE, people^^.

So long,

Zora.


	14. Chapter 14

Aaaaand, here I am again^^.

A bit shorter than the last two chapters, but I really wanted to end this chapter right were I did…it fit perfectly for it *lol*.

Thank you my dear Avecia (OH, and GO and read her oneshot "Better than love". It's a few into Damons mind, and really great work!), for you incredible beta work, and thanks, my sweet readers and reviewers, because you always make my day!

Now, I don't own anything about the VD, but it's fun messing with them nonetheless *gg*.

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

"Run the _hell_ faster damn it!"

Jeremy just rolled his eyes and flipped Tyler his middle finger – whilst simultaneously trying to run faster.

But it's not as if he got chased by a bunch of pissed off vampires every day.

"Well, lend me a few of those handy little werewolf genes and I'll see what I….."

He wasn't able to complete his sentence, as the vampires finally got tired of their _'hunt down a midnight-snack'_ game.

One of them appeared in front of him, lifting him up by the lapels of his jacket, and another got Tyler in a chokehold as he tried to come to his aid.

"A human and a little wolf…how curious. So, which of the two of you is the pet?"

This got quite a laugh out of his companions and, widening his grin, he showed his fangs.

"Anyway. I have enough of this; better – _prettier_ – things to do and kill tonight. Let's get this over with."

_Cute… lived__ through vengeful tomb-vamps and crazy biological mothers, and get killed as a random snack…_was all Jeremy could think, before he clamped his eyes shut.

He might have panicked more, if there wasn't still way too much adrenaline (and admittedly quite a bit alcohol) running through his veins.

As it was, he just waited for the pain of teeth ripping into his throat, and the lightheaded feeling of his blood leaving him.

But it never came.

Instead the hold on his jacked slackened before it was gone entirely.

The next thing he knew, there was a dull thud on the ground directly in front of him. And then all hell broke loose.

The vampire restraining Tyler fell to the floor – his head landed a few feet away from the rest of his body.

The others that were hunting him and the werewolf looked confused into the dark. They hadn't heard anyone, nor had they seen the attacker.

The predator became the prey. An amused laugh made them – _all_ of them – snap their heads straight ahead.

Jeremy couldn't see a damn thing through the thick underbrush, but he was certain that he could _feel_ something strange coming from there.

"You know, you should have seen your faces boys. It's always so much better to get you when you're unaware. The one moment when the mask slips, and I can see the fear that there is something more dangerous out there than you are…"

Finally a dark shape began to separate from… well, all the other dark shapes, till there was a woman standing on the clearing.

Dark hair falling down to her shoulders, black leather jacket, black jeans and… oh yeah, _black_ high heels.

No wonder that he hadn't seen her – perfectly camouflaged for a night trip into the woods (well, despite, maybe, for the heels – how the hell could that woman walk in them on this uneven ground?).

But… there was something eerily familiar about her.

One hand on he hip she strutted forward, as if walking on a catwalk, lips drawn into a cold grin.

"You see, normally I don't make it my business to get in the way of a hunting party between vampires and werewolves.

But there is a human here, too. And I can hardly allow you to make a bloodbath here. Because this? _This_ is _my_ playground. _My_ town. Don't think for a moment that you can come here, make trouble and leave unscathed."

With that she blurred forward, plunging a wooden stake into the chest of one and a branch into another.

Soon there were five dead – well, deader than usual – vampires lying on the ground, a sixth cowering on the floor in front of the woman.

"Now listen closely _buddy_. You got lucky tonight. I need you to tell your mistress to pack her things and _leave_. If she won't do it, I'll hunt her down and send her back were she came from. And this time, there won't be a chance for her to play blind passenger and come back. Got it?"

The vampire just nodded, looking like he might faint at any moment.

_He__ didn't know if vampires _can_ even faint. Without getting too much vervain into their system first, that is…huh…_

As she stepped back from him, the vampire lost no more time, but jumped up and blurred away.

Leaving him and Tyler alone with a crazy-ass, vampire-killing chick in black.

_Great_.

"So… you alright boys? Nothing important chewed off? Tyler? Jer?"

Tyler blinked a few times, narrowed his eyes and cocked his head to the side. And sniffed the air, for good measure.

"Do I know you? You certainly smell familiar."

She just turned around to face them, pushing her hair out of her face and gave them a mischievous grin.

In that moment something clicked inside of Jeremy's brain. Her walk was a bit more confident and her voice was a bit deeper. The hair was shorter, and her face had matured – showing a woman, instead of a teenager not quite there.

But the eyes were the same, as was the way she was bothered by the hair tangling into her face.

"_Elena_…" And really, the name was everything he could get his mouth bring to say out loud.

There were so many thoughts, so many questions running around his head…

"I'm dead, right? This vampire sucked me dry, and I'm dead… are you the… welcoming committee or something? Shit… Jenna will be so _pissed_…. My god… _Elena_…"

And no longer caring about how pissed his aunt would be about loosing her last living relative, or if he was dead, he ran forward, wrapping his sister into a bone-crushing hug.

She was startled at first, but then shrugged and patted her brother on the shoulder, before pushing her hand against them, to get him to back off.

He did so, albeit hesitantly. It had felt so damn good to hug her again. Dead, hallucination or whatever-the-hell else, this was his sister.

"Right… _No_, you're not dead and _yes_, I'm Elena. Now, help me to pile these idiots here up."

She said those two sentences with such a commanding, sure tone, that the both of them –even Tyler with his wolf DNA – did what they were told.

Soon the vampires were neatly stacked; just to burst into flames from one second to the next.

Jeremy looked at his sister, wondering what the hell was going on here.

The alcohol was out of his system by now – nearly being killed could do that to a person – and besides his sheer _joy_, he wasn't sure what to feel.

Soon there was nothing but ashes left of his would-have-been killers, and the fire died down.

"Come on you two. My car is parked just a few minutes from here. I'll drive you to the boarding house."

Tyler eyed her suspiciously. He had felt a twinge as he had heard the news of her death a few years back, but they were never actually friends. So there was no overwhelming rapture and a desperate want to believe that it _really_ was her.

Sighing she stopped in her tracks, turning around to look at him.

"Listen, Tyler. It's good not to believe everything your eyes – or strange women in the woods – tell you, but you can cut it out. You _reek_ of distrust, and I just saved your ass. If I want you dead, all I had to do was let those vamps have their fun.

Now, you're going to follow me to my car, and I will drive you to the boarding house. Jeremy, you send a messenger to… all the important persons, and tell them to get their asses over there, too. It's… kind of an emergency."

Then she turned around again, and marched on. Tyler and Jeremy looked at each other, swallowed, and did what they were told.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Damon stood in front of the fireplace, one hand holding a tumbler filled nearly to the brim with whiskey, and the other massaging his temple. He had nothing against a little company every now and then, but _this_ was just ridiculous.

Jenna, Alaric, Bonnie, Stefan, Caroline and Matt.

He could live with the aunt and the teacher. Had nothing against the witch and his brother… but the other two? Just because Blondie played defender for the supernatural beings in front of the founder's council, didn't mean that he had to _like_ her. And her husband was even worse.

Too bad that Caroline had started to remember… things… as she began to drink vervain once she became a member of the council.

At least Bonnie got her to listen to reason, and now they had someone to hold those phobics back whenever they tried to go on a damn witch (or werewolf, vampire…) hunt.

Right _now_ though, he would like to throw all of them out of his house.

Every single one of them talking, swearing and making a general ruckus – his head began to hurt already.

That wasn't a problem when he still was a vampire. No pulse to hammer too loud in his ears, or behind his eyes.

And it was all the fault of the little Gilbert.

What had the boy (he never had stopped thinking of him as a boy. Just like he never stopped to think of his brother as one – even now, as he was way over 150 years old.) been thinking, writing such a text message?

_Come to the boarding house. ASAP. Emergency. Jeremy._

Surefire way to drive everyone insane, in this town.

As he heard a car pulling over in front of the house, he put the tumbler on a side table and cracked his knuckles, ready to give him a piece of his mind.

But then there were three people entering the living room.

First Jeremy, then the wolf and then…

He recognized her the moment he got a glimpse of her – no mistaking these eyes and lips, and the scent that was so unmistakably hers.

_Elena_.

And, considering the shocked faces all around him, he wasn't the only one recognizing her.

Jenna looked about ready to faint and Alaric's mouth hung about as wide open as his eyes.

Caroline was close to breaking Matts hand with her death grip – but he returned the favor right back.

His brother simply sat down, stopped his usual human habit of breathing and instead made a enviable imitation as a statue.

Bonnie looked only mildly surprised – but that might be because she already knew that Elena was alive, all this time.

A grin began to appear on his face, before he couldn't hold it in any longer and laughed out loud.

Simultaneously everyone turned to look at him. He got his bearings back pretty fast, though. "So… how was Milan?"

And just like that, he rang the starting bell to the inquisition from hell.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Sooo… I know, it's a bit of a cliffhanger, but I guess it could be worse… at least, this time I hadn't killed anyone *lol*

Let me know what you think – you just have to click on the little button below.

Reviews are Love, people!

So long,

Zora


	15. Chapter 15

Her I go again^^.

Hope the waiting wasn't too long for you guys!

I just have a lot to do at the moment, so SORRY.

Now, as always a HUGE thanks to AVECIA for her great beta work.

Thank you to my dear readers and reviewers (I've over 100 reviews people! You are SO great!).

So: I don't own anything 'bout the VD, I just mess a little with them.

On with it!

_xoxoxoxoxoxxo_

"_So… how was Milan?" _

_And just like that, he rang the starting bell to the inquisition from hell…_

_xoxoxo_

The eyes that were glued on him up to that point, took on a strange play of ping-pong as they wandered from Elena to him and back again.

Elena just ignored it and flashed him a bright grin, before she blurred forward and came to a stop right in front of him.

"Actually, it was quite boring. Beautiful city, nice nightlife and sights and all that, but nothing to do but play tourist."

His question answered – even though they both knew it was just asked to shock everyone else in the room – she lifted her right hand to his cheek, and looked deep into his eyes.

"You look good, Damon. Not a day older than the last time I saw you. The tan fits you, though – way better than the ghastly pale that comes without a beating heart."

It was strange, hearing her voice again. So long all he had were letters. True, the words were just for him, and he was grateful beyond imagination for this, but still – there was no comparison for hearing and seeing…for _feeling_ her.

He covered the hand on his cheek with one of his own, and just reveled in her caress.

"Well, _you_ have changed. A bit older – no more child in your features. And I like the hair – very mature. Sexy."

They really had two different conversations going on at the same time.

The light banter that could be heard by everyone else, and the one they held just with their eyes.

It was like all those years apart just never happened. They could read each other without the slightest problem, making sure that they were okay, telling the other how glad they were to be in each others presence.

They got interrupted by Caroline, who got bored with being ignored and cleared her throat.

"Right. Nice to know that you still only think of one thing Salvatore. But when you're done making bedroom eyes at her, would you care to explain _**what the hell just happened**_?

Because last time I checked, Elena was _dead_. Lying in her grave, with a tombstone on top."

He could see that Caroline was on a warpath now – the crude words she used were enough proof of that. She would never speak of Elena like that, otherwise.

She was an eerie mix of cold hearted bitch, loyal best friend, her _mother_ and a tyrant.

Well, that's what she was to her friends.

He usually just got the cold hearted bitch directed at him.

"Well, excuse me _Blondie_, if the whole world doesn't revolve around you. Too bad."

"Says the man who pouts like a little child when all attention _isn't_ directed at him. It's so typical for you to…"

In the middle of her rant he stepped back from Elena, made his way around her and got right into Caroline's face.

It seemed he had forgotten that he hadn't seen her for years, his entire attention consumed in a shouting match with the blonde woman.

Elena turned around and cocked her head to the side, watching the two of them getting red faced as they got worked up and shouted louder with each word, trying to dominate the other.

Then she heard footsteps coming to a stop beside her, and saw Bonnie out of her peripheral vision.

She turned fully around to the witch, looking her right into the eyes and smiled.

"Hey there. What's with the two of them?"

Bonnie just grinned and shrugged her shoulders before she answered.

"To be honest, I have not the slightest idea. They just hate each other. Every time they're in the same room, they shout and swear at each other. It gets boring after a while, believe me.

Just ignore them, that's the best you can do about it.

By the way, Damon was right. You _do_ look good. If a little too much like a female version of him."

Elena had to laugh silently at the last statement of her friend.

"Don't worry Bonnie – I still have other colors in my wardrobe. But it's easier to go undetected if you blend in. So for night trips in a supernatural-phobic town, it's black for me."

Bonnie just shook her head and then looked seriously at her best friend, before she crushed her in a hug.

"Damn Elena, it's so good to see you. I've _missed_ you."

The expression on Elenas face turned from smug and a little indifferent to a tender one in an instant.

"I've missed you, too. Katherine is good company most of the time, but I'm glad when I can flee from her temper tantrums every once in a while. And there is nobody who could replace you."

As they finally let go of each other, they saw that Matt was trying his best at reigning his wife in. He succeeded only partway – but at least she was no longer trying to strangle Damon.

God only knew what stopped _him_ from just throwing the blonde woman through the nearest wall every time they were at each others throats.

"So… how about you try to calm him down? I hazard a guess you'll be of more help with that than anyone else."

Elena looked at Bonnie, shrugged, and made her way over to were Damon stood, still swearing and threatening.

She laid a hand on his shoulder. When that wouldn't help, she called him by his name. That got him to look at her, and she could see how he instantly calmed down.

And a moment later, he stepped away from Caroline, bringing enough distance between the two of them, so that he won't be tempted to start anew.

"So… now that those two are done with their shouting match, how about we all sit down, so I can explain why I'm here?"

It _sounded_ like a question, but there was a sudden hard edge to her face and tone, that it was clear that she wasn't really _asking_.

And as they all wanted to know what was going on anyway, there were few protests, and soon everyone was sitting on a couch or armchair – or leaning against a wall, in Damon's case.

Elena took the last free armchair and waited till the others were silent enough for her to begin.

"So… I guess you want to know why I'm not six feet under and rotting, but we have to postpone _that_ particular conversation. Let's just say that Bonnie is… more advanced in her magic than any of us thought.

Now we need to discuss more important stuff, though. You all must've noticed by now that there are… strange things happening around here. Stranger than usual, that is."

She waited until she got confirmative nods and a few mumbled _yes'_ from around the room until she continued.

"Yeah. So, that's why I'm here. I don't know what _exactly_ is happening, but it's something big.

All around the world vampires, werewolf and other _not_ human beings vanish – and they're heading right here, to Mystic Falls. Or at least near enough.

I've noticed for some time that something isn't quite right here – strange, _dark_ vibes reaching me even on other _continents_.

Isobel is sneaking around town, trying to find out what it is, but so far, she hasn't gotten any valuable answers. And _yes_, , I'm in contact with her." The last comment was thrown in because she saw the man gathering his courage to ask her something – and she was sure that it was about his ex-wife. And by the way he clamped his mouth shut immediately, she was right, too.

"And to make it clear from the beginning: I'm not here to play happy-family-reunion or something like that. I'm here to try to prevent something horrible from happening – and spending time with people I can trust."

Jeremy tried to make himself as small as possible as he heard her words – sure that he was _not_ on his sisters 'can trust' list.

But she would be sorely mistaken if she thought that he wouldn't at least _try_ to get on her good side again.

_Six years_ he had lived with the feeling of being partially at fault for her death. And now she was here, and she was okay – beyond okay, if her performance in the woods was anything to go by – and he could try to be a better brother now.

He had no clue what happened – only that Bonnie obviously had something to do with it – but he couldn't care less, either.

All that mattered was that she was _alive_.

And by the looks of it, most people in this room thought along the same lines anyway.

He could see that Jenna was only halfway paying attention to what her niece had to say; she was too busy with holding herself back from jumping up off the couch, to gather Elena in a hug, and never let her go again.

And Caroline might put on a tough font, but she couldn't sit still either – same with Matt by her side.

The longing in Stefan's eyes was unmistakable, too.

It seemed that only Alaric and Tyler were able to fully listen to what she had to say.

And Damon and Bonnie, but those two were out of count. They already knew that Elena was still out and kicking (and beheading and staking…), so their brains weren't still reeling with shock.

"Okay so… some evil mastermind is running around Mystic Falls summoning an army? Is _that_ what you're trying to tell us?"

Leave it to Tyler to simplify things, and make them sound like a worst-case scenario at the same time.

"Could be. I just know that there is this power that is like a damn sirens song, and its coming form Mystic falls. I don't know if somebody is trying to build an army, or if it's just a side effect from the power gathering here."

"Hm… and how is it possible that I don't feel anything? I'm a werewolf, too, but I can't feel some dark mumbo jumbo flying around."

Elena sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose with two fingers.

"Tyler, really. I just _said_ that I don't know what's happening. I'm here to find out – to try to stop it.

I have no idea why you – or anyone else in this town – can't feel anything. Maybe it's done on purpose. Or maybe it got stronger with time, and you just grew accustomed to it."

The werewolf grunted something unintelligible, but leaned back then, satisfied for the moment.

"Good, now that we have this out of the way how…."

Elena couldn't finish her sentence, for suddenly all windows and doors sprung open and a cold wind blew over them, carrying a loud, bodiless voice with it.

"_So, she came back home, the little girl. And all grown up, she is. But let me tell you – you come in my way and I will _**crush**___you and your friends. Go, leave now, and never return. Otherwise you'll be back in your cold grave faster than you can call your witches name. And this time, there will be no coming back for you. I want this town to suffer; I'll pay them back for everything they've done. I'll get my revenge, and if I have to run you over on my way, then so be it."_

With that, the wind died down, leaving the room in utter silence.

"I guess this means '_game on_' then? Although those special effects really weren't necessary."

Damon made his way over to his liquor cabinet as he said this, throwing a wicked grin over his shoulder.

Elena grinned right back, leaning back in the armchair to get comfortable.

"Yeah, game on."

Xoxoxoxox

**So, I know that there was no tearjerking reunion scene, but I can't just let her be all happy-go-lucky. And I'm sorry about Caroline and Damon, but not EVERYbody can like him.**

**And I figured Caroline has more reason to hate him than Bonnie. So^^.**

**Now, please click on the little button below and tell me what you think.**

**Reviews are love, people!**

**So long,**

**Zora**


	16. Chapter 16

I'm back again^^.

Not much to say for me this time only:

THANKS to AVECIA for her beta work – I couldn't wish for a better beta than her (and: go read her stories, they are GREAT).

A great 'thanks you' to my readers and reviewers too. I'm glad you're staying with me, still^^.

Also, I don't own anything 'bout the VD, I'm just messing around with them. It's too much fun to stop!

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Elena was lying on the lawn in the backyard of the boardinghouse, arms and legs spread out, simply staring at the stars above.

She had talked with Jenna and 'the Donovans' - she still was baffled that Matt and Caroline had tied the knot – already. Those two conversations had been the easy ones, really.

Jenna was so glad to see her, to know that she was okay, that she only had a _little_ hissy fit.

And Caroline was just… Caroline. Took everything in stride, and wanted to know if she met any interesting people (read: men or celebrities) on her travels.

Matt hadn't changed all that much either. Still solid as a rock. Loyal friend, loving husband and even after all those years, the sweet little boy she'd known since she was too young to remember.

Tyler wouldn't be interested in a heartfelt catch-up. They never really were friends, just acquaintances at the best of times. And Alaric was ticked off of her list at the same time as Jenna, as he wouldn't leave her side, even for a moment. And if the ring on her aunt's hand was anything to go by he would soon be family.

That left only Stefan and Jeremy.

With her brother she would deal later. She loved him; that much was true. But even after all those years she hadn't quite forgiven him for the harsh words he said in her last night as a human being.

Anger and hurt aside, he had had no right to say the things he had. She could've lived with the 'go to hell' he threw into her face earlier that night. But to blame every death on her, to _wish her dead_? That went beyond his rights, even if she had blamed herself at the time.

She knew herself well enough to know that she would forgive him sooner or later. Now that she wasn't at least one ocean apart from him, she couldn't shove him to the back of her mind anymore.

But the conversation she dreaded the most, was the one with Stefan.

The only thing he had done wrong was to ignore how they had drifted apart over the last couple of weeks in their relationship.

And she had done the same thing – only realizing it, as she had wrote the note she had left on her bed.

She had no idea what he had been up to since she left Mystic Falls. Only that he, too, had traveled a lot.

But he had returned home after a few weeks gone, every time. That was all she heard about him. She was really glad that Katherine had kept them up-to-date with the happenings 'back home'. It would be worse if she had known _nothing_.

Elena moved her head slightly to the side as someone sat down beside her.

When you think of the devil…

_Stefan_.

Sighing she pushed herself into a sitting position – she had hoped to postpone this particular conversation for _at least_ another few days.

Seems like he had other ideas, though.

As a few minutes had ticked by and neither of them had said anything, she got tired of waiting.

"Don't you want to ask me something? Or maybe shout and swear… I won't mind either; promise. I mean, I _had_ left you to think I'm dead. So, give it your best go."

Stefan gave her a tired smile at this and leaned back onto his elbows, gazing up into the sky like she had been doing only minutes before.

"I don't know what I want to do, really. I believed you were dead for so long… and somehow, I have the feeling that I have no right to be angry. I mourned you, true. But…I got over you after too short a time. You were right with what you wrote. We wouldn't have made it. Guess we just weren't made for each other."

He was silent again, thinking about something before he continued.

"I always saw this fire in your eyes, as we first met. Even if it was buried under sadness, it was always _there_.

But with me, it was always just a safe little camp fire**.** Just warming everything to a safe and pleasant degree.

With Damon, though, it was entirely different.

I first saw it when you were angry with him; that this fire was consuming you and everything around you. No longer safe and confined, but an honest to god forest fire.

You know what he had said once; back when we were _both_ still human?

He said:_ 'Love has to burn you. It has to have the power to hurt and destroy you, but to make you whole and different and new and __**perfect**__ at the same time. Everything else is just a fleeting infatuation.'_

I remember it because it was so unlike him – being so philosophic.

I laughed at him, at the time – I was just 13 and still thought of women as strange beings.

Later, with Katherine, I first got an inkling of what he was talking about – even if I was confusing lust with love.

And then, so many years later, I met you. And the closer we became, the more warmth I felt inside. It was safe and beautiful – but the fire I saw in you scared me sometimes.

The few times you let loose, you reminded me so much of my brother, it was eerie. Not the cruel, bitter side he always showed after Katherine. But this 'live life at it's fullest, as if there is no tomorrow' attitude. To always see something funny or interesting, or challenging, no matter how deep or dark it seems.

But I held onto the safe feeling, was afraid of loosing it… of loosing _myself_ again.

I was unfair, to the both of us – _and_ to Damon."

As he was done he just sat there, basking in the soft light of the moon, and looking at ease with the world.

It stunned her; it was as if the weight of the world, which constantly seemed to be on his shoulders, was finally gone.

Relieve flooded her instantly. After being afraid of his reaction for so long, it felt like she could finally breathe easy again.

Still, she had to make sure that there was no bad blood between them.

"So… you're not angry with me? You're not gonna snap or something?"

He contemplated her question for a moment before he answered.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not… _happy_ about everything here. It would've been nice to know that you're okay – it would've eased the guilt a great deal. And I really don't like the idea how Damon must've laughed behind my back, every time he got a new letter from you. They were from you, right? To think that he knew, all along… it's leaving a bitter taste, I can tell you. But other than that? No, I think we're… okay. Maybe _now_ we can be the friends we were destined to be from the beginning."

"Friends… yeah, I think we can do that. Thank you, Stefan."

She leaned into him, then, and gave him a sweet, lingering kiss on the cheek, before she got up and made her way back to the house. Before she went inside, she looked over her shoulder, finally free from at least _this_ burden in her heart.

Then she closed the door behind her, and went to find Damon.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

After he hadn't answered as she knocked on his door, she entered his room just to find it empty.

But as she wanted to leave again, she heard the splattering of water from the bathroom, so she closed the door and sat down on his bed, leaning onto the headboard.

She took a book from the nightstand – laughed as she saw it was the battered exemplar of 'The call of the wild' Bonnie once summoned from the bookcase downstairs, and wondered how often _exactly_ he had read the book by now.

Shrugging she opened it to the first page and began to read herself as she waited for him to get done in the bathroom.

About fifteen minutes later he came out, only clad in a towel, wound around his hips.

He lifted an eyebrow as he saw her sitting on his bed, sock clad toes waggling in time to an unheard beat.

She put his book back on the nightstand she slowly let her eyes gaze over him before she returned his glance full force.

Taking on the unspoken challenge, he dropped the towel from his hips, standing naked in the middle of the room.

He snorted as his actions failed to embarrass her and turned to put on boxers and a shirt.

"I think Katherine ruined you. You're not even trying to look offended. Now, where's the fun in that?"

She chuckled silently and pushed herself off of the bed, stopping a few feet in front of him.

"Nah, _that's_ not Katherines fault. I think I forgot to be ashamed of a naked body as we lived with this native tribe in Amazonia for a few weeks. They were naked _all the time_. Really bothered me in the beginning. But one day I went to the river to wash my hair, and found myself undisturbed by the men and women already there. I think I just grew accustomed to it."

She shrugged then, and waited for what he would do next.

"So… are we going to pretend that there is nothing to talk about? Because, you know, I can do that – I'm real good at it, too."

It was just like him to leave this decision to her.

"Depends."

"On?"

"Well… on what _you_ want. I have no idea how your feelings changed since I've been gone. I don't know what you want anymore. So, if you want to play the pretending game and go back to be friends, we can do that."

He laughed at that – at her.

"You can be quite funny if you want to, you know?"

Damon closed the gap between them, caught her head between his hands and, just like that, kissed her.

And it was everything she ever imagined his kiss to be. Full of everything he felt, it revealed more than everything spoken in human words

It laid him bare in front of her, and she felt beautiful and unique, wanted and _loved_.

But it ended all too soon as he broke the contact between their lips, leaning his forehead against hers.

"Stupid woman. Don't you know that it was always just you? Ever since you saved me in Georgia – threw Lexi's words back into her boyfriends face. 'When it's real, you can't walk away'."

She smiled at him, putting all the longing she felt for him into the smile before she captured his lips again.

As her hands drifted to his chest, she wondered briefly why he had put on a shirt in the first place. But in no time all thoughts left her, leaving her only to feel.

Some time later she felt his soft mattress under her back, never once loosing a thought on how she got there – never mind how she had lost her jeans and top.

The only thing that mattered was that she could feel his skin on hers, burning and sending cold shivers over her at the same time.

The entire time they refused to close their eyes, wanting to make sure that this was real.

Soft gasps and moans filled their ears, spurred them on to elicit even more from the other.

Soon even the last pieces of clothing were gone, nothing separating them, nothing hindering them to become, _finally_, one.

There would be time to be slow and gentle later.

Now, the only thing that counted was this moment. To be together, after they waited for so long for this to happen.

No words of love and devotions and forever were needed. Touches and kisses, and the expression in their eyes told everything there was to know.

Later they could talk. Later they could promise the world to the other and apologize for lost chances. Later. But not now.

Because now they were whole again, no longer separated. There was no need for them to pretend.

They just lost themselves in the other, not a caring in the world.

Tomorrow they would start to worry, start to be responsible and strong.

But this night was theirs, with only the stars and the moon watching them, granting them this moment of peace.

Xoxoxoxoxox

Now, I'm done for today. I hope you liked it – hope it was okay how I let the relationship between Stefan and Elena end. And how I brought the one between her and Damon to a new level^^.

Tell me what you think. Just click on the button below and type!

So long,

Zora.


	17. Chapter 17

**So… this update took me longer than expected, but somehow I have LOADS to do at the moment, so, sorry for the delay^^.**

**THANKS to AVECIA for her amazing beta work (I couldn't do this without you, my dear!) and to my readers and reviewers (I LOVE you guys).**

**I own nothing 'bout the VD, I just have fun roughing them up^^.**

**On with it!**

Xoxoxoxoxox

As Damon opened his eyes, it was still dark outside. He was confused at first, not knowing what woke him.

But then he remembered what happened a few hours earlier – and saw that the bed beside him was empty.

The sheets where Elena had been sleeping were still warm, so he figured that was what shook him from his sleep – her disappearance.

He pushed his blankets off then, and clad himself in the boxers and shirt he had discarded hours before.

On silent feet he walked out of his room and down the stairs.

There were low voices coming from the living room, and he could see the flicker of fire; someone must have lit the fireplace.

He walked fully into the room and around the couch…. And saw something so surreal he thought for a moment he was still asleep and dreaming.

Sitting there were Katherine - with her feet up on the coffee table in front of her – and Elena.

Elena had her feet in Katherines lap, and _damn_ if those two didn't look cozy.

He had known that they became friends on their travels together. Elena had told him so in her letters. But to actually see them like this; all peaceful and like the oldest of friends… it kind of threw him for a moment.

Right now they were staring up at him, Katherine with a wicked grin and Elena with an apologetic look on her face.

"Sorry, I was trying _not_ to wake you…guess I was too loud, nonetheless."

He blinked at her, coming back to the present.

"No, it's alright… you were already gone when I woke but… not that I want to sound paranoid or something, but what the hell is _she_ doing here? And when did she arrive?"

His voice was laced with disgust as he jerked his head in Katherine's direction. He wasn't happy to have her in his house, and he made no secret of it.

Elena just lifted an eyebrow at his attitude.

"She's been with me for the last six years Damon. You _know_ that. She has a knack for getting her hands on information and she loves to rough someone up every once in a while.

We're gonna need her help with this one, you _know_ that too. And her plane landed just a few hours ago – she's been in the house for the last half hour."

He sighed and combed his hair with his fingers, bringing them into even more disarray than they were before.

Elena's serious face got softer at this all too human behavior, and she scooted over on the couch to make room for him.

He thought about it only for a moment and sat himself down, pulling her onto his lap in the process.

She was aware that it was some kind of test on his part. He wanted to know if she would stand by what they had done; if she would be open about her feelings for him.

So she smiled tenderly and snuggled into him, caressing his cheek with one hand and planting a sweet kiss on his mouth.

The kiss was meant to be short – a little show of affection – but it lingered on and soon turned way more heated than she had planned it to.

Katherine just sat beside them, watching on for a while; watched as Elena changed her position, straddling the man under her and he, in turn, buried his hands in her hair.

She cleared her throat a few times, but the two seemed to be lost in their own little world.

Sighing, she pushed herself off of the couch and turned to go.

"I'll just be upstairs in one of the empty bedrooms, then. Find me when you're in the mood to be G-rated again."

As that got only a lazy wave out of Elena, Katherine decided to call it a day.

The fly from Europe had been long and tiring, and the prospect of a bodiless, mysterious voice with gathering armies had her on edge.

Maybe a little sleep would do her some good – _Elena_ certainly had found out how to blow off some steam.

She smiled – a real smile for once – as she ascended the stairs. It had been good to see the other woman like that. Over the years she's gotten too hard and cold; very much like herself.

She had buried her feelings. All the anger and disappointment and guilt- and all she had been able to do, was to stand by and watch.

It had saddened her, to watch such a kind heart turn to stone.

She was beginning to think that this new danger was a blessing in disguise. It had forced them back to Mystic Falls – forced Elena to face her past. And, more importantly, it had brought her back to Damon. Maybe, hopefully, he'd be able to heal her heart, mending his own in the process.

It was strange, how some things worked out. The Salvatore brothers had been so afraid of _'history repeating itself_', and in the end the whole situation had been turned upside down.

She, herself, had always only played with Damon. He was interesting, wild and new. Not really a southern Gentleman, but a kindred soul, hungry for freedom.

They were too similar to function together.

Stefan on the other hand… Gentle, soft and fulfilling her every wish even before she had voiced it aloud.

Sometimes she thought that she really had loved the younger brother – that maybe this foreign feeling was the reason she bailed on them, leaving them to their own devices.

Then Elena came, and Stefan fell head over heels for her. Worshipped the ground she had walked on. Damon – living up to his promise to make Stefan's life a living nightmare – came in between them and did everything to destroy what his brother had found.

And without even realizing it, the human girl had the second brother in her grip as well.

But this time around it had been Stefan who had to step back, and Damon got a permanent place in the girl's heart. Even if it took them a long time to realize it.

"Come on, really? Why didn't they just stay in his room?"

Katherines head jerked up at the voice, and her eyes came to a stop on Stefans figure at the top of the stairs.

She tilted her head to the side, wondering what he meant – and heard a moan, shortly followed by a choked gasp from the direction of the living room.

Smirking she fixed her gaze on Stefan and then shrugged her shoulders.

"Well… it's not as if you wouldn't be able to hear them from there, too. What's the difference to you?"

Stefan grimaced and shuddered visibly before he answered.

"How about that I have to sit on the couches and armchairs in there?"

She pretended to think about it for a moment.

"I somehow really doubt that this is the first time that something like this has happened down there. I don't think either of us wants to know how many women he's screwed on _any_ given surface in this house, anyway."

He rolled his eyes at that – technically knowing that Katherine's words rang true, but on the other hand, not wanting to think about the old ways of his brother.

"That was unnecessary – _so_ not a picture I needed tonight. It's bad enough that he has Elena now. I don't need to be reminded that he really don't deserve her."

"And _you_ do? The one who brought him his first _meal_? Who got him _killed_ by stupidly running to Daddy-dearest?"

Stefan winced at her harsh words, but couldn't deny that she was right – _again_.

But it was hard to acknowledge that he had lost Elena forever. Not to death, this time, but to his brother. It was true what he had said to her earlier that night. Didn't mean that it hurt any less though, because he would always love her in some part of his heart.

So deep in his thoughts, he hadn't noticed that Katherine had climbed the remaining stairs, until she interlocked her arm with his.

"Come on Stefan. You know that they're meant for each other. We're not right for them. You are too serious most of the time for her. And I could never satisfy his heart. I'm just not warm enough – couldn't be, even if I wanted to. I just don't have it in me.

I need a place to sleep, care to show me to an empty room?"

He watched her for a moment, and then just nodded and led her away. But not to an empty room.

She smiled slightly as she entered a room that could only be Stefans. It seemed like he made an effort to try to let go of Elena.

Yeah, maybe this was _really_ a damn blessing.

Xoxoxoxoxoxox

It was early in the morning as Jeremy walked into the living room, having spent the night in one of the empty rooms – one of the many advantages of a _boarding house_.

He just wanted to go straight to the kitchen; he really needed coffee after a sleepless night.

He hated how his sister made peace with everyone but him – even though he knew that he deserved the cold shoulder she showed him.

As he was about to leave the room on the other side again, he caught a movement from the direction of the couch and turned to face it.

Only to wish that he hadn't.

The two figures lying there were covered up to the waist by a light blanket (one that was thrown over the back of the couch usually, if he remembered right), but otherwise naked.

Damon on his back, and Elena, his _sister_, on top of him.

Their hair was tussled and he could see pieces of clothing strewn about the vicinity of the couch.

He blinked owlishly, turning whiter by the moment. No matter how hard he tried to look away though, he just _couldn't_. It was like his eyes were glued to them….Pure torture.

There were many things he never wanted to know about his sister, and the fact that, _yes_, she actually had a sex-life? Was definitely right at the top of that list.

This was _Elena_, for god's sake! Pure, kind and innocent. Never mind that he had watched as she had _beheaded_ a vampire last night.

"You know kiddo, it's rude to stare. I'm sure that your parents told you that."

Jeremy just blinked on; not at all surprised that Damon could wake up and mock him before he even opened his eyes.

The man had the sarcastic side marks down to a damn art by now.

"We're naked in your living room, Damon. People are _bound_ to stare."

Well… he hadn't counted on his sister to join the once-upon-a-time-vampire in his taunts.

In the time span of only a few seconds his face turned from paper-white to tomato-red.

Finally he was able to turn around and move again, and he did just that.

With his head tucked close to his shoulders, he stormed out of the living room, and right back up to were he had spent the night, entirely forgetting about the coffee.

The laughter of the other two followed him upstairs.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

It took two hours – and a few more red faces – for Damon and Elena to find their way back upstairs, and another one for them to be back down in the kitchen were the others waited for them.

It was quiet as they entered, with Katherine on one side of the big counter, and everybody else on the other.

Elena just snorted and walked past her, giving her a peck on the cheek on her way to the coffeepot. While she poured herself a cup, she threw a glare to her friends.

"You should do yourselves a favor and be civil. She's here to help. And I have the feeling we're gonna need all the help we can get."

She made a point of sitting on the empty chair to Katherines left, before she took a healthy gulp out of her cup.

A few minutes (and plenty of murmured protests later) they were sitting – equally split – around the table.

"Now, I suggest we don't waste any time. Any ideas where we could start to look for our little visitor from last night?"

Of course, there were ideas – and they were voiced in utter chaos, everyone trying to be louder than the others.

Elena just sighed – painfully aware that her timeout with Damon was over.

It would be a long, _long_ day.

Xoxoxoxoxo

**Done for today! I know this chapter was a bit of a filler, but I had to bring Katherine back into the game somehow^^.**

**Now it's your turn, just click on the button below and let me know what you think.**

**Reviews are LOVE!**

**So long,**

**Zora**


	18. Chapter 18

Sorry this chapter took me so long, but I had a few stressful days!

Thanks for AVECIA for her superb (an QUICK) betawork, and thanks to my readers and reviewers, you are GREAT!

Now, I don't own anything about the vampire diaries, I'm just (as always) messing with them^^.

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Elena sank down in an armchair, glad that everyone had quieted down a bit.

Never mind that she had to threaten the men out of the house to accomplish that. Now they were on their way to some bar or another, and she had stayed behind with the women.

They all had agreed that they would start to… investigate – for the lack of a better word– tomorrow.

It would make no sense to start today, as they would need a clear head for that… and that just wasn't happening today.

Everyone, except Bonnie and Damon, still tried to come to terms with her still being alive.

Not to mention that she obviously had slept with Damon and nobody seemed to understand _that_.

They all kept on shooting sympathetic looks in Stefan's direction – and if looks could kill, Caroline would have had Damon on the floor, choking on his own blood in a matter of seconds.

It had been quite funny to watch, actually.

Bonnie, treating him as a friend, and Caroline, taking every opportunity to voice how much she hated him.

Everything had changed, in the time she had been gone. Everyone had matured and grown up.

Nothing was the same, anymore. Caroline, who had joined the police, and Matt, who was in the last steps to become a teacher.

Bonnie with her esoteric store and Tyler studying _psychology_ (really, that was the weirdest thing she had _ever_ heard).

A few years back, she would have laughed if somebody had told her that. But life never turned out as you expected it to; so in a weird, twisted way it actually made sense.

She looked up as the other girls – or women…they had ceased to be girls a long time ago – came into the room; armed with tea, lemonade and a few snacks.

She raised her eyebrows at them, silently asking what was going on.

"Well, it seems your friends here decided it would be a good time to… you know what? I don't actually know what they want to do. But I think it involves talking and giggling. They forced me to join, too. And just for the record, I'm _not_ okay with that."

Elena had to smile at the petulant attitude Katherine displayed – by the way her eyes sparkled she could see that she actually looked forward to it.

"I have not the slightest idea how you can stand her 'Lena. She's acting like a spoiled little girl. And that's coming from _me_."

On the other hand… maybe they weren't so different from the girls they had been six years ago. Apart from the whole carrying-a-gun-thing, Caroline was much the same as before.

Still snarky and bitchy, still managing to make everything about herself.

So she just laughed and shook her head.

"Well, I guess I'm just masochistic like that. Now, how about we start the girl time you obviously have planned now, before we have the house full of grumpy, drunk men?

I have so much to tell you all, you have _no_ idea! And _yes_, Caroline, that involves oily kabana boys in Key West, too..."

It probably wasn't the smartest thing to do – they should start to search, should find out who was behind this new trouble coming over Mystic Falls. But trouble always had a way to find them, so it was their right to take a little time for themselves, every once in a while.

Xoxoxoxoxoxo

It wasn't even an hour since they'd been kicked out of the boarding house, and already they had grown out of things to talk about.

The problem was, they were all so different, and they hardly found a topic that would interest _all_ of them.

The teacher and Stefan could've talked about literature and what-not, but the rest of them would be bored to death. Tyler and Jeremy were living on a totally different planet most of the time – the music they listened to was nothing more than disturbing noises mixed together, they had no taste for good movies…

And Matt? Well he was just Matt. He had no problem with the other man, but he was boring. Not to mention that he had married _Caroline_, of all people.

So now they sat in some dingy Bar, dwelling in uncomfortable silence.

"Okay so… seeing as we run out of uninteresting things to say… how about we talk about something that we _all_ want to know. Like… Tell us Damon, how can it be that you knew my sister wasn't really six foot under?"

He nearly choked on a sip of his Bourbon as Jeremy hit the issue they had all steered clear of – on purpose – head on.

Sometimes he really couldn't _stand_ Elena's brother. He already wished the uncomfortable silence back.

But as he looked around the table, he saw that the postures of the other men had changed from bored to mild interest.

Sighing he emptied his glass, gestured the waitress for another and began to talk. He knew how persistent these bunch of freaks could be, if they wanted to.

"Well… I wasn't the first one to know, actually. She visited Bonnie, who then told me.

I haven't seen her in all those years – not once. Only got letters from her. And postcards – you know, the ones plastered to the walls of my room? That's basically it. No personal interaction whatsoever, besides that."

Tyler snorted and then chuckled at his last sentence.

"_No personal interaction_, my ass. The way she said 'hello' sure didn't look like you two had no contact over the years.

Never mind the way we found you two this morning. Pray tell… how is that _not_ personal?"

Was it _Jeremy_ he hated sometimes? Seemed like he had to invent a damn new _word_ for Tyler.

Balling his hands into fists and leaning over the table, he got right into the face of the Lockwood heir.

"Listen here, Wolf-boy. First: it's none of your business what I do or don't do with her.

Second: I didn't say there was no contact at all. Just not close and personal. Meaning we hadn't a chance to meet. I did get the letters from her – and she somehow always managed to be up-to-date with whatever happened in this town. That's _it_."

As he sat down again, he looked challenging into the faces of the others.

"Anyone else who wants to share his opinion on it? And _no_ Stefan, you don't even want to try – that nice little vampire-style-hickey you have there, robbed you of any rights."

His brother's eyes got as big as saucers as his hand snapped up to his neck where – sure enough – the faint, already mostly healed outline of a bite could be seen.

Damon was satisfied – it had always been so easy to get the attention to someone else when needed.

And right now, his brother was the perfect scapegoat.

Just then the waitress came with a new glass of Bourbon; with it in his hand he leaned back and enjoyed the show.

It was just too entertaining how his brother tried to worm himself out of this situation; but it was no use. _He_ had heard what was going on in Stefan's room last night, even though he really had paid no attention_ at all_; his focus was on something (read: someone) way more… satisfying.

Grinning like a madman, he thought that this forced night out wasn't so bad at all.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Damon was still grinning as they went (or stumbled, in some cases – the teacher really couldn't handle his liquor, and neither could Blondie's husband) back inside the house.

He could hear that the girls were nowhere near ending the evening; there was the occasional giggling, and he could smell the alcohol even in the entrance room.

They didn't even notice him – or the others, trailing in behind him – as he entered the living room.

There were abandoned pitchers of lemonade and tea on a side table – they obviously had matured to the hard liquor on some point of the night.

Caroline and Jenna hung on Elena's every word, while Bonnie looked mildly flustered.

Katherine was just leaning back, eyes closed, and sipped on her glass (filled with his expensive liquor by the looks of it… _bitch_) and grinned every now and then.

"… so I turned around and got rid of my bikini top and gave him the bottle of sun block. I have no idea how he did it, but I _swear_ I turned into a damn puddle of goo not half a minute in… never knew that there are so many erogenous zones on the back…anyway, the next thing I knew…"

He could see that Jeremy was already starting to get this really unhealthy tomato-like color on his face again (he noticed that this was turning out to be quite common the last day and a half)… and as he still had to repay the boy for reminding the others that he knew everything…

"You know Elena; you should have said that you like it like that. I bet you look… breathtaking on all fours."

The boy looked as if his eyes were about to pop out, and his face was so red now, it resembled a little girls that had played with her mothers rouge.

The others just looked at him, blinking owlishly, and then cracked up. Even Caroline, which was an attest that he had to buy more liquor really soon.

His grin got even wider as he saw the slight blush creeping up on Elenas face.

"Well, would you look at this… seems like Katherine hadn't had enough time to ruin you completely, after all. This color really suits you."

Hooking his thumps into his belt loops, he sauntered to his liquor cabinet, taking stock of what would have to be refilled.

Verdict: don't _ever_ let the girl alone in the house with his good stuff again.

Sighing he emptied the last drops of his Single Malt into a tumbler, and slumped down onto the couch next to Elena.

Her eyes spat fire in his direction for a moment, but soon they softened and she leaned into him and nuzzled his neck.

"You know, you don't have to test me every few hours. I won't run away or pretend that this hadn't happened. You've got me now, and I'm not going to leave you again."

She had whispered the words, and he was pretty sure no one else had heard them.

It was kind of scary how fast she had him all figured out – he wasn't even aware that there was an ulterior motive to his words (other than getting one over the younger Gilbert, that is) himself.

So he just pulled her closer, burying his nose in her hair, and inhaled deeply.

"I know. Sorry about that."

The hand that had rested on his until now, wandered up to his cheek before she kissed him.

"It's okay… you'll be paying for it later. When we're alone."

She said it in a near-whisper again, but he was pretty sure he saw Katherine's lips quirk upwards for a moment.

"Come on, guys… can't you at least wait until we're _out_ of the room before you're going to do the nasty in here _again_?"

Cue his brother with his really, _really_ bad timing.

"I don't know, Stefan. Can you and Katherine be less destructive the next time you _fuck_? I'm pretty sure the interior of your room will thank you for that."

With that he got up to his feet, and wandered to the stairs, not caring for the slightly shocked look on Katherines face. She wasn't expecting something like this; good.

"If you need more time with your girls, that's okay. I'll just be in my room."

Elena shook her head, pushed herself up off the couch, and was by his side in less than a second, intertwining their hands.

"Nah, it's okay. I'm coming with you."

As she began to ascend the stairs, she looked back over her shoulder and waved with her free hand.

"Good night."

As he watched her back – their hands, clasped tightly together – he thought that, no, she wasn't about to run again.

She was home again, she was with _him_. They were whole.

Xoxoxoxoxoxo

Done for the day^^. Hope you liked it, even if it was a bit boring. But I figured you needed a break from all the drama (I know I did) so a nice, plotless chapter^^.

Now, tell me if it was TOO boring, please – just click on the little button below^^.

So long,

Zora


	19. Chapter 19

So, I'm back again, and the first thing I have to do is apologize. I'm sooo sorry that it took me so long to update, but here I am again^^.

THANKS (as always) to my readers and reviewers, you are the best.

And an extra big THANK YOU to Avecia, my dear beta reader – without you this story would be soooo much worse^^.

Also, I don't own anything 'bout the Vampire Diaries.

Now, on with it!

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Next morning found the kitchen of the boarding house full of grumpy people, most of them nursing a headache from hell (otherwise known as a hangover).

The only ones currently _not_ sitting somewhere around the big island in the middle of the room, were Damon and Elena - meaning that someone had to go upstairs to get them.  
A fact that made the situation ten times worse. Not one of them were _not_ woken up by suspicious sounds coming from Damon's bedroom that night - so they were severely lacking a volunteer for the mission.

So they decided to throw neatly folded slips of paper into a plastic mixing bowl. The poor soul to pick the paper with a drawn _x_ on it would have to go upstairs to wake the pair (or interrupt them in whatever else they were doing at that moment).

Caroline took the bowl, and let everybody take a piece of paper, before sitting herself down again, looking at her own. She sighed in relief as she saw the blank piece in her hand - right at the same moment as Jeremy let his head fall onto the table, mumbling something she could not understand.

Head still down, he lifted one hand up, showing everybody the paper with the black _x_ on it.

Biting back a laugh, Katherine leaned back in her chair and watched him.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Up you go. I think they're having a break right now - can't hear screaming, panting, moaning or... well, _anything_ from up there."

Not bothering to answer the crazy ass vampire, he banged his head one more time on the wooden surface, before he got up, looking as if he was attending his own execution.

As he stood in front of the room, he took a moment to gather his bearings, knocked and then opened the room.

The curtains were closed, only letting in a sliver of light. The sheets on the big bed were a mess, and a few pillows weren't even ON the bed. His sister was lying on her back, head hanging nearly off of the side, sheets barely covering the... important parts. Damon was lying half across her, head cushioned by her stomach. Her cheeks had a light pink hue, and he just _knew_ it wasn't because she was embarrassed to be caught in bed, naked, with a man, but rather because of the activities she had been engaging in. Her breath wasn't all that slow either, so he guessed he had been lucky that he hadn't come up here a few minutes ago, or he really _would_ be scarred for life.

"Is there a reason you're disturbing us, or did you just come to ogle your sister... which would be _really_ weird. And kind of disgusting."

Elena rolled her eyes and slapped Damon on the shoulder, but the grin on her face told them that she wasn't really upset.

"_You_ are the one with your mind permanently down in the gutter, not me. But yeah, I actually _did_ come for a reason. Everybody else is already up, and we're just waiting for the two of you. We have some planning and discussing and what-not to do."

"Fine. Whatever. We'll be down in a few."

Jeremy swallowed around the knot in his throat – he wanted to be _out_ of this room.

"Actually…I'm to stay up here until at least _one_ of you is out of the bed, and on the way downstairs…"

Elena watched the two of them bickering for another few seconds, before she decided that now was the best moment to get the last obstacles out of the way.

"Hey Damon? Why don't you go and make sure that there is enough coffee to bring me over the next few hours? I'll join you as soon as I've… cleared up a few things, alright?"

Understanding immediately, he fished a pair of black jeans from a heap of clothes lying right next to the bed.

With a blur of motions he slipped into them, and had a fresh shirt on, even before Jeremy had time to turn around.

Grinning as he saw the exasperated look on the boy's face, he sauntered off, leaving the siblings alone in his room.

As soon as the younger Gilbert realized that he was alone with his sister, he took a step backwards, towards the door.

"Ah… right… now that Damon is downstairs, I guess I leave you alone to get dressed."

He quickly turned around, but before he could even reach the door, there was a heavy gust of wind, and the door slammed shut.

Knowing that it was probably of no use, he still tried the knob – but as already suspected it wouldn't budge.

Turning back around, he waited for Elena to… well, he didn't know what _exactly_ he waited for, just that it couldn't possibly be fun. For _him_, that was.

But as he caught sight of his sister, she was just sitting on the edge of the bed, putting on socks – already clad in jeans and top.

As she sat there, he thought that she really _was_ kind of a female version of Damon, just like Bonnie said the other day.

Everything in black, and her face carefully modeled to show not a hint of what she was thinking or feeling.

"Oh, relax Jeremy, will you? I'm not gonna leap up and rip your throat out, or something.

To be honest, I rarely enjoy blood. I only indulge in this side of me when I need a serious energy boost. Like, when I'm injured, or have gone too long without a proper rest or something.

Right now I'm perfectly fine, so no worries."

He blinked a few times before he registered what _exactly_ she had said to him.

"Blood? But…Aren't you alive? I mean, you said something about _Bonnie_…not that one of the vamps gave you blood…"

Elena could see the telltale confusion in Jeremy's eyes.

"Well, yeah, I'm alive, no doubt about that. I have a nice heartbeat, I have to breathe, and I can walk in the sun. But that doesn't mean I'm actually still _human_, you know?"

"Okay but… if you aren't a vampire and not human – but still have the urge to drink blood sometimes – what exactly _are_ you?"

Jeremy seemed to have forgotten that he was currently _not_ on his sister's good side.

"I don't know. Did one of you find out what Damon had become? After Bonnie's spell, I mean?"

Her brother wrinkled his brow, trying to figure out what Damon had to do with all of this, but couldn't quite figure it out – and it showed on his face, _again_.

Sighing, Elena stood up, and came a few steps closer, finally coming to a stop in arms reach of him.

"Think, Jeremy. Damon isn't a vampire anymore, but he's not human, either. And _I_ drink blood – without getting sick to the stomach, and I can even draw strength from it.

It's quite simple, actually. You all thought that Bonnie's spell made Damon human – or at least _alive_ – again. In reality though, it had taken something from him and transferred it to me.

Now we are both caught somewhere in-between. We are not weakened by vervain, and we _can_ walk in the sun. But we have to breathe, and we have a heartbeat, and therefore can be killed easier than the average vampire. Well, maybe not _easier_, per say; but there are more… alternatives. It doesn't have to be a wooden stake, sunlight or beheading."

Some of the confusion vanished from his face at her words. They actually made sense; at least, when you live in a town like Mystic falls, and are friends with werewolves, witches and vampires.

Only…

"Okay. Got it. But that doesn't explain the setting-vamps-on-fire and the trick with the door. As far as I know, Damon was never able to set things aflame with just a look. That was always Bonnie's thing, not his."

Now Elena grinned. Seemed like her brother really had a decent head on his shoulder when he put _some_ effort into it.

"Hm. Yeah, that one, I'm still trying to figure it out myself. I guess it's a little… souvenir from… beyond the grave. I have a few nice party tricks, but nothing too fancy. We can leave the witchcraft safely in Bonnie's hands.

Now, that's not why I wanted to be alone with you."

With that her face turned serious again and as Elena crossed the last few steps between them, he quickly shut his eyes, figuring that now he'd be done with.

But after a moment he realized that there was no pain, but rather the warm feeling of two arms around him.

He opened his eyes slowly, still waiting for the other shoe to drop, but the scene didn't change.

His sister was still hugging him to her, no trace of violence or hate.

And so, slowly, carefully, he wrapped his arms around her, relishing in the feeling of having his sister back.

He blinked furiously then, feeling the telltale burning sensation of tears behind his eyelids.

He wouldn't cry, damn it.

Just then he heard a sniffling sound coming from the girl in his arms, and figured, _what the hell,_ and let the tears – only a few – fall. They were out of joy, anyway. No need to be ashamed.

They stood like this for a few minutes, Elena letting go of the last remnants of anger, hurt and the feeling of betrayal, and Jeremy just feeling glad that he wouldn't now have to figure out some crazy scheme to get back into his sisters good graces.

As they let go of each other they grinned, taking in the slightly red eyes and tear tracks on the face of the other.

Elena blurred to the bathroom and returned with a wet washcloth only moments later, holding it out to Jeremy – her own face already looked as calm as ever, no trace of tears or emotional turmoil left.

As they finally _both_ looked presentable again, she took his hand and wandered out of the room, and down the stairs.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

As she came into the kitchen, Elena was glad to see that this time no one struggled to be as far away from Katherine as they could.

Though there was tension so thick you could've cut it with a knife, it was better than the scene from yesterday.

And it was more than amusing that Caroline sat right next to the vampiress, the both of them sending equal looks of aggravation in Damon's direction.

The man in question sat on the other side of the table, sipping on his coffee and talking with Bonnie.

"Now that's a sight to behold… I already gathered that _Caroline_ can't stand you, Damon, but what did you do to deserve _Kat's_ death glare?"

Damon just shrugged with his shoulders in a wordless attempt to show her that he didn't know, and then pointed to the empty chair between himself and Bonnie, before he resumed his conversation.

She lifted an eyebrow, but let go of her brother's hand nonetheless and took her seat, her eyes lighting up as she saw the full cup of coffee right in front of her.

"No, really Kat. What _did_ he do?"

"Better question: what _didn't_ he do. He's Damon, little one. He was always good at riling everyone up."

Elena just rolled her eyes and tried to hide her smirk behind the cup.

She could never stay serious when Katherine started to ramble about how infuriating Damon was – considering that she wasn't even a _little_ bit better.

But she always figured that that was the problem –they were too similar to get along.

"Right. Whatever, but, Kat? Stop calling me '_little one_'. We had to pretend that I'm your older sister for at least three years now."

"Well, that's because you _look_ older. I still have centuries over you. _And_ you're calling me _Kat_. All the damn time; like I'm some sort /of pet or something. You stop with that, and I will consider thinking of a new name for you,_ little one_."

She laid extra emphasis on the nickname, just to spite Elena. But both of them grinned, no maliciousness in their gazes.

Everybody could see that this was an old argument, and was only still held because neither of them would let the other win.

"Okay. Whatever. Now, before we begin with planning anything, there are still a few things I have to tell you. Everyone awake enough to listen?"

Elena waited for grumbled and grunted affirmations before she began.

"Well… as I said, I have no idea who our little wannabe villain is _exactly_. But I do know _some_ things.

First, it's a _she_. I heard a few of her…minions – for the lack of a better term – refer to her as 'Mistress'.

And she was dead. I don't mean the kind of dead that will give you fangs and bloodlust, either.

She was honest-to-god dead and buried. Not unlike me. And she came back much the same way, too.

Somehow she managed to… well, play blind passenger as I got pulled back from The Other Side.

I never saw her back then, just felt her presence.

And it was _not_ a nice one. Hate and anger wafted off of her in really sickening waves.

As I finally was calm enough – stopped my panicking – to think straight again, she was already gone, and I couldn't, for the life of me, remember if she wasn't just in my imagination.

I forgot about her soon enough, only remembering as she started to gather people.

What we have to find out now, is what could possibly be powerful enough to hitch a ride back from The Other Side. The spell was only meant for _one_ person, and it already changed _two_.

There's no way the little-miss-eerie-voice _just_ tagged along. She had to have been a powerful being all on her own, as she had still been alive. So, let's try and find out – I'll go and meet up with Isobel, see what information she got her hands on. Anymore questions in the meantime?"

It took more than half an hour to answer the questions that –_ of course_ – came after she asked.

She would have to _stop_ asking, if she ever wanted to get anything done around here.

As it was, everyone wanted to know what she meant with _'and it already changed __**two'**_.

So she explained – for the second time that day – what Bonnies spell had done to her and Damon before she made her way to the foreclosed house that Isobel had claimed for her stay in Mystic Falls.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Done for today! Now you have to tell me if you liked that chapter, or if it was TOO boring. I think there'll be more action in the next chapter – don't know EXACTLY, yet, because my stories tend to have a mind of their own, and do NOT always do what I tell them to o.O…

No, please click on the little button below – reviews are LOVE people!

So long,

Zora


	20. Chapter 20

Guess what, I'm back already! And I really had fun writing this chapter, so I hope you like it too!

Just… I have to up the rating because of this…xD.

Now, thank you my dear readers and reviewers, you are the best. And I bow to my lovely beta AVECIA, I couldn't do this without you!

AND, before I forget: there are a few things in there that might sound… not so nice, but I'm NOT a racist, I just needed to be really crude to make this chapter work!

As always, I don't own anything about the Vampire Diaries, and no –

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Walking up to the house Isobel had taken for herself, the first thing Elena did was shake her head.

It was always the same with her birthmother – all you had to do was to look for the most expensive, biggest place around and voila, there she'll be.

She hadn't bothered to knock on the door; knowing Isobel, the music inside would be too loud, and she wouldn't hear a hoard or raging horses galloping through the front yard.

And she had been right too, because as she went inside she could practically feel the bass vibrating through her very bones.

The big living room was in quite the state – furniture overturned, clothes strewn around everywhere (and what a cliché: a bra hanging from the ceiling light).

If it wasn't for the clothes, she would have thought that there had been a fight in here, but as it was, she had a pretty good idea what happened instead.

And people thought she and Damon had no shame. At least they hadn't trashed the whole room in the process.

Sighing, she kicked a pair of boxer shorts aside and went around a flimsy little thing of a thong (and she knew that Isobel wouldn't wear something in this radioactive shade of pink – the woman preferred it darker).

As she finally had made her way to the bedroom she just rolled her eyes.

It seemed that Isobel would never grow tired of her little threesomes.

A pretty young woman and a man with too much muscle for her taste were lying – cuddling – on the bed. Isobel was nowhere in sight, but as she went to the CD-player and shut it off she could hear someone tinkering around in the kitchen.

Glad that she wouldn't have to deal with Isobel's newest tag-alongs she went back into the living room, maneuvered her way around the warzone, and entered the kitchen.

Isobel was sitting by a table, coffee cup in her hands and immaculately dressed.

Without saying anything, Elena got herself a cup of the freshly brewed, still hot coffee before she sat down opposite the other woman.

They were silent for a few minutes, just sipping on their coffee and enjoying the silence of midmorning.

But after she was already half through her cup, Elena decided she had wasted enough time with nothing.

"So… found out anything we could use?"

"Well, hello and good morning to you too, my dearest daughter."

Rolling her eyes – again – Elena plastered on a saccharine smile, showing as much teeth (making it as false as possible) as she could.

"Good morning _mommy_, I hope you had the best night ever! You had no trouble on your travel, I hope?… and _did you find anything we could use_?"

Her face returned back to a serious, emotionless mask at the last part. Isobel just flashed her an amused grin.

"You spent too much time with Katherine, you know? She ruined you."

"And _you_ should stop channeling Damon – because he said the exact same thing. Now, I wonder which is worse. Me, having a few of Katherine's traits, or you, having a few of Damons; considering that you can't stand _him_, but I like _her_, I guess it's pretty obvious."

Isobel looked like she bit into a lemon at this, but soon had her features schooled into her usual suave way again.

"Right. Down to business now. As I can't run around compelling people into telling me what I want to know, I had to do it the hard, old-fashioned way. But the folks here are just too damn paranoid when there is someone knew in town, so I couldn't get my hand on much information.

I know that _she_ was here a _long_ time ago – that she had been _dead_ for a long time before she came back with you.

There have been a few murders in the last few weeks. The police are trying to _not_ let anything go public, but it's getting harder. I saw one of the victims – and it was a gruesome sight indeed. Even _my_ stomach protested… and I've seen… and done… a few not so nice things in my time.

But this? It was… the woman had been _mauled_. Barely recognizable as a human anymore. And by the looks of it, she had been tortured before she was killed. She had no finger- or toenails left, and her eyes had been burned beyond a chance of repair. And that's just a few things.

So, whoever _she_ is, there is a lot of hate in her. Nobody is born like this – and nobody is turned into such a hateful being without a reason.

Something must have happened when she was here the first time around, because whatever she is doing, it looks like revenge to me."

Elena looked into her cup for a few minutes, processing what Isobel had said. So this person had a grudge against the people here. Some score to settle with Mystic Falls.

And it probably had something to do with the way she died.

Emptying her coffee cup, she stood up and finally looked her birthmother into the eyes.

"I need you to tell the others what you found out. _Every single detail_. And then we need the police reports of the murders. Maybe there is a pattern. And _then_ we have to find someone who was powerful, and could have a reason to hate Mystic Falls."

With that, she turned around and went for the front door.

Nearly there, she looked over her shoulder, and called back inside.

"Well, are you coming?"

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

"Tell me teacher, why are we down here, again?"

Alaric was _this_ close to just jump – head first – off of one of the ladders to knock himself out. It wasn't like it would kill him – and even if it _would_, he would just return after a few minutes.

Instead he just used his teacher-to-stupid-pupil voice on the other man, and explained it again. Even if he knew that the other man did this on purpose to rile him up.

"Because Elena called, and said we need to find someone that could have been more than human, and would have – for some reason or the other –had a grudge on Mystic Falls. Someone who had been dead for _at least _50 years. Killed, most likely. And down here are the oldest police reports."

"Yeah well, I get why _you_ are here. You're a history teacher – bound to find anything resembling a book or an authentic report of times-long-gone interesting.

And these dust-gathering folders are fitting that description perfectly. I just don't know why _I_ had to tag along. It's _boring_!"

With that he heaved another box full of folders down – and promptly got showered in a rain of dust.

Three sneezes and a disgusted headshake later, he opened the next folder and leafed through it; all the while trying to ignore the sniggering teacher, and the whipping noises he made.

He just never was good at ignoring the teacher when he tried to be an ass.

"Yeah yeah, I get it. I'm whipped and I'm not trying to do anything against it. But it's not that _you_ are better. At least _I'm_ getting some – tell me, when's the last time you got Jenna to scream so loud that she woke up the whole house? And I _don't_ mean the kind of screaming that ensued because you forgot some anniversary or the other."

Alaric didn't answer his question – but he stopped his sniggering and went back to work, so Damon guessed he had made his point.

"So… how do we know that we'll find something down here? I mean, it's not as if there will be a red 'ATTENTION, WAS A POWEFUL BEING BEFORE WE KILLED HER' sign."

Sighing Alaric shut another one of the folders – the robbery of a seventy-something year old man wouldn't help them.

"Come on, man. Don't play stupid. I know that your brain is working quite fine. Sometimes. When you're not drunk to all hell, at least. We have to find something unusual. There are a lot of 'animal attacks' over the years – which I guess are due to mostly _you_ or a rogue Lockwood here and there. But we don't need a bloodless corpse or a wolf's chew toy.

What we _need_, is someone who had a horrible death; someone who maybe even was tortured beforehand, not some random act of violence. We sort out those, and answer the 'powerful' question later."

Half an hour later they were still elbows deep in dusty boxes, as Damon caught sight of something that let his blood run cold.

With slow, deliberate movements he got a box down from the highest shelf and the back of the room.

It read _1869, B_. and nothing else. But he had a damn good idea of what he would find inside.

He opened the box slowly, and took the folder that lay atop of a few pieces of evidence.

Taking a deep breath, he began to read the report - though it seemed to be more like a diary than anything else.

_We have her, finally. For long months everything we could do, was to watch out for everything__ unnatural, but she had been careful, very much so. Until last night._

_We followed her into a meadow, and there she began to chant in a barbaric, godless language, and the clear sky grew suddenly a midnight black with clouds._

_We wasted no time, but rushed to her, and knocked her unconscious before she knew what happened – she was so deep in her concentration that she never heard us coming…_

Closing his eyes for a moment, he opened the folder a few pages ahead, already fearing what he would read next.

…_She is stubborn, trying to tell us she only prayed. We all know that those black women _have_ no religion! They are barbaric; believe in no sacred, good power. And this one, she is a whore of the devil. We should have known from the beginning. After all, she came with that godless creature, Katherine Pierce, who corrupted my sons…_

He should have known that his father had his hands in this. It seemed that the man had a hand in nearly everything that went downhill in his life.

…_She is still holding strong, even after days without food or water. We have decided that we have to move at a faster pace. Who knows, maybe there are more of her kind nearby, just waiting for the right moment to destroy this __town, to lead us off the right path, down the road of their sins. Never can we allow for that to happen – we worked so hard, had built this city out of nothing. It cannot be that a being so putrid can wander free, without any punishment._

_So we __will do anything in our might to bring this one down, to make an example out of her…_

_...We finally have a plea of guilt. It took us long enough as it is. __And as she finally confessed to have used the powers that the devil gave her, she tried to make us believe that she _helped_ us. It's laughable; never would we believe such outrageous fabrications of the mind. The most ridiculous tale was, that the device John Gilbert invented himself – the one that enabled us to find the vampires – would have been useless without her._

_That it only worked because she had woven her magic into it. The sooner we get rid of her and her poisonous whispers, the better… _

… _We wanted a public execution for that wench, but now we can't. The noble citizens of Mystic Falls can't see her like this. They can't know that we literally had to skin her to get her to confess her crimes – to see what lies beneath the human shell. So we will bring her to the ground right outside of the cemetery. There is a stake already built there – the citizens will believe that the fire is just a funeral pyre. It is time now. The witch shall burn…_

"Fuck… hey teacher? I think we _really_ have a problem."

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

The kitchen in the boarding house was – again – not a very comfortable place to be.

It seems that even though Katherine's presence here was slowly starting to be accepted, Isobel still had a long way to go.

The fact that not even Elena was all too fond of her wasn't easing the thick air in the least.

And Jenna kept on giving her the evil eye – she was still not sure if she hated the woman more for abandoning Elena, or leaving Alaric behind. Then again, if she hadn't left Elena with her sister and brother-in-law, she would've never got to know her. And if she still would be with Alaric, she herself _wouldn't_…

As nobody wanted Isobel to be privy on anything personal, the conversations had quickly died down, and now they were only waiting for Damon and Alaric to return – they had called about ten minutes ago, to tell them that they found something.

As they finally heard a car pulling into the driveway, they all had to make an effort to _not_ just jump up and rush outside.

But suddenly they heard a shout from outside, quickly followed by something heavy crashing against the outside wall of the house.

Elena was the first one to reach the door, and she threw it open, nearly ripping it off its hinges.

She came to a halt halfway down the front steps, standing so still she looked like she had turned to stone.

Crouching in front of a knife wielding Alaric was a… thing that looked like it came straight out of a movie.

Two red, bushy tails, pointed ears, blank, red eyes, fangs that any vampire would envy and claws fit to rip right through a man– but other than that, eerily human.

Bonnie stumbled out right after Elena, trying to remember what that thing could be, and how _it could be killed._

The thing made a leap forward, aiming right for the man's throat. Luckily Alaric was used to things with a much faster speed, so he moved aside just in time, and even delivered a kick.

Then Bonnie registered that Elena still hadn't moved – hadn't even tried to come to Alaric's aid.

Frowning she finally looked into her face and instantly regretted it – the expression would make all the demons from hell tug their tail and run for their very lives - but followed the line of her sight anyway… right to where Damon was.

As she let her eyes wander between him and Elena, she just couldn't decide what frightened her more.

The fact that her best friend looked like was wanted to rip something, some_one_, to pieces – _literally_; or that Damon was lying in a growing pool of blood and wasn't moving.

Xoxoxoxoxoxo

So, apart from my little cliffhanger – for which most of you will probably hate me – I hope you liked this chapter. Also, you should have a pretty good guess at who my villain is, now.

Anyone care to try?

And I KNOW that there is a VD episode tonight, but PLEASE don't forget my review… I life for them people!

So long,

Zora


	21. Chapter 21

I'm back again, and now you're gonna find out what I did to Damon *gg*.

Thanks to all my readers and reviewers. EXTRA thanks to AVECIA, who – as always – did an amazing beta job!

I don't own anything 'bout the Vampire Diaries, I'm just messing with them for fun.

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

The moment Elena saw Damon lying on the floor, not moving, never mind trying to stand up her whole world came to a sudden halt.

There were no sounds, no colors, nothing. Only Damon, and the garish color of his blood in the otherwise grey-seeming surroundings.

Then there was a pain right were her heart resided, spreading out in circles through her whole body.

She couldn't breath around it, couldn't even _imagine_ to ever move again. Right until the moment this creature had pounced on Alaric again and had ripped his throat open.

From the corner of her eyes she saw the man slumping to the ground, trying to stench the flow of blood, but not really succeeding. It didn't matter though – he would die, and simply wake up again.

But the fact that the teacher was out of the way, meant the thing now zeroed in on Damon.

_Not happening_, were her only thoughts, before she blurred forward right into the path of it.

She could hear Bonnies voice, but it seemed like far away, or packed away in cotton wool. She said something about _Kitsune_, _fox_ and _the tails_, but she would lie if she said she paid attention to it.

Elena couldn't care less for how to weaken it, or the fastest way to kill it.

She wasn't planning on making this one fast or painless.

Because, she figured, when there are _not_ enough pieces left to fit into a lunch box… well, that would do the job, too.

A cold, calculating, _malicious_ smile stole its way onto her face. Then she crouched down and attacked.

Time didn't matter anymore, nor did the deep scratches the creatures claws left on her skin.

Soon the jacket she wore was hanging in strips off of her, and she knew that neither shirt, nor jeans would be salvageable.

She didn't care. Nothing mattered, but to rip it apart, to make it _bleed_.

She relished in the sound of ribs braking, and the feeling of blood coating her fingers.

The Kitsune finally realized that there was no chance for it to win this fight, and it got desperate, clawing right across her face, trying to take her eyes out.

But even as it watched, the wounds began to heal again, and soon not even scars were left.

And all her friends could do, was to stand there, and watch in shock and horror as sweet, little Elena turned into some sort of savage warrior. They had known that she had changed – it had been more than obvious.

Everyone had seen that there was a new, hard edge to her. She was more confident, was a woman sure of herself. But this was beyond what anyone had imagined. She attacked with accuracy, going for the weakest points on the body, and got out of the way of most counter attacks, light footed as a dancer.

And the blood coating her didn't even seem to faze her in the least. It was a gruesome picture – and an eye-opener.

Where the '_old_' Elena would have gasped in horror and would have rushed to Damons side, trying to find out if he was okay, not caring about anything else… well, this '_new'_ one seemed to only care about getting rid of the danger and handing out revenge while she did it.

Because, what good would it do her to break down in tears, just to be attacked herself?

Xoxoxo

Isobel stood beside Katherine, a sad look on her face.

All she had ever wanted for her daughter was to live a normal, _human_ life. She had meant it, as she had said that the Salvatore brothers would be a curse for her.

But the life she led now was even worse. Because with the brothers, she, at least, would have been reasonably safe. There would have been no need to learn how to fight, how to _kill_.

No need to grow hard enough to _not_ care about the blood of another being running down her face.

Katherine saw the pained look on Isobel's face, but for once decided to let it slide.

She knew the woman mourned the lost innocence of her daughter, and it wasn't her place to tell her that it _had_ to be like this.

Looking back to Elena, she saw that the fight was finally nearing its end.

The Fox Demon was staggering on its feet, visibly weak from blood loss and injuries.

And then Elena went for the kill. Taking a page out of Damons book (because contrary to his beliefs, she knew what had happened to Bree), she crushed her hand through skin, muscle and bones, and ripped the still beating heart right out of its body.

As the Kitsune slumped to the ground, eyes wide open in shock, she let the now useless organ fall to the ground, and stood there, staring into nothing.

The sounds of retching shook her out of the trance she was in, and she looked back to the house, only to see Matt hunching over, getting rid of his breakfast. She would apologize to him, only it would've been a lie. There was nothing she felt sorry for – only maybe that he, and the others, had to watch this.

Then she swallowed a few times, to get rid of the sudden knot in her throat, and slowly, deliberately, made her way over to Damon.

Kneeling beside him, she took a moment before she carefully turned him around, so he was lying on his back.

His eyes were open, staring up at her… and they were blinking. She then noticed the rise and fall of his chest, and the steady heartbeat under her hand.

He was alive.

She closed her eyes for a moment, feeling such an intense sense of relief that she got dizzy from it. As she opened them again, she was frowning. He was alive, and obviously awake. Then why wasn't he moving?

"Hey, can you hear me? Damon?"

But he just stared up at her, not moving even a single finger, only blinking and breathing - and somehow managing to look pissed, just through the expression of his eyes.

Tipping her head to the side she was lost in thoughts for a moment, before she carefully rolled him onto his side.

Pushing his shirt up, she let her hand wander up his spine, paying close attention to every vertebra. Her hand stopped over a patch of skin that was black and blue – and were she could feel the telltale texture of a broken bone.

Sighing she rolled him back onto his back – even more careful than before, and cushioned his head in her lap.

"Well, this sucks. But I guess it beats being dead. It will take a few hours to heal, though."

With that she wiped as much of the Kitsune's blood off of her wrist as possible, and then bit into it till it was bleeding.

She opened his mouth with the other hand, and then let her blood drip into it, massaging his throat so he wouldn't choke on the very thing that was meant to heal him.

"I know it's not quite as powerful as vampire blood, but I guess you're as immune to it as I am – Katherine's blood has never done me any good when I had been injured. Anyway, it will speed up your healing, and it's better than nothing."

She heard the others coming, but she couldn't quite bring herself to look away from him right now.

She had been so fucking _afraid_ that she had lost him.

"Elena? Is he… he's alright… right?"

It took some effort for her to lift her gaze to meet Bonnie's. But her best friend looked so worried, that she couldn't bring herself to snap at her. So she forced a slight smile onto her face and answered her.

"Of course he's gonna be alright. A few hours, and he will be as good as new. Don't worry."

"Oh. Okay but… he isn't moving."

_Way to point out the obvious…_

"Yeah, I know. He's cracked his spine. So no moving until it has knitted itself back together again. But like I already said: he's going to be quite alright."

Bonnie just nodded then, and sat down beside her, shoulder to shoulder, not caring that she got blood on herself.

It was good to be home again, she realized. Not even this show of raw savagery had shattered the bond with her best friend.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

An hour later Elena was stepping out of the en suite bathroom to Damon's room, wrapped in only a towel and hair still wet.

Damon was lying in his bed now, and by the looks of it he was asleep.

Elena had – with the help of Stefan – carried him up here earlier, so he could spend his forced time-out in at least some form of comfortable surroundings.

She was sure he had been mortified that they had to carry him – that he could do _nothing_ for himself until he was healed again, but there had been no way around it.

While Elena had stayed up here with Damon, the others had busied themselves with getting rid of the mess she had left behind.

In hindsight she thought that maybe she should have helped them – it had been kind of her fault that the blood had been everywhere.

But that was the thing with hindsight – it came to bite you in the ass when it was already too late.

So she had instead peeled the clothes off of Damon, pleased that the deep scratches over his right arm and chest were already healed – the scratches where the blood that had send her into this frenzy had come from. Not needing to patch him up, she had washed the blood off and then covered him with a blanket, before she went for a shower herself.

It had taken a while till the water that had run off her body had lost its pink hue, because by that time the blood on her body had already mostly dried up.

But now she was all pretty and clean again.

She went to Damon's cupboard, making a silent note to herself to go get her own clothes from the Bed and Breakfast she had left them at.

Dressed in an old pair of sweats and a shirt a few sizes too big for her, she trudged over to the bed and sat on a chair beside it. She would lie down next to him – she was tired enough – but refrained from it as to not jostle him. She knew he would be okay soon enough, but it would go faster if he just slept on. Like this his body could concentrate of patching itself up and nothing else.

Just as she was about to get comfortable in the chair, there was a knock on the door, closely followed by Alaric as he entered the room.

He wasn't looking as if it had been his choice to come in here, so she guessed there had been another '_loser gets to bite the lemon_' game.

Rolling her eyes she turned to fully face him and waited for him to speak. As he just stood there, looking more uncomfortable by the second, she had mercy on him.

"Do you need something?"

"Yes…well, I don't _need_ anything. But Isobel is…to be honest, she kind of being a royal _bitch_ right now. I was hoping you would come down, so I can explain what Damon and I had found."

Lifting one of her eyebrows she studied him more closely, only now seeing that he looked kind of stressed out.

"What you really want is to get on with it already, so she can go make herself scarce again, right?"

"Eh…would it be terribly rude if I said yes?"

She had to laugh at this – it was typical for her birthmother that she had everyone hanging on their last nerves in record time.

"Don't worry about it. She's usually good at riling me up quite a bit, too.

I'll be down in a few, okay?"

Looking relieved, the teacher just nodded, turned around on the spot, and made his way back down again.

With a last look at Damon she got up and followed her aunt's fiancé downstairs.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

The situation that awaited her downstairs was kind of chaotic. Jenna and Isobel were standing so close to each other that they had to feel the breath of the other woman on their faces, shouting and gesticulating like lunatics. Alaric was standing beside them in a fruitless attempt to get them to calm down.

Katherine was lounging in an armchair, trying to pretend that she was filing her nails. Anyone with eyes could see that she was enjoying the show, though.

The others were just standing or sitting around, not quite knowing what to do with themselves.

Elena just rolled her eyes, stalked over to the women, took Isobel by her upper arm and pulled her to another armchair. She pushed her down onto it and gave her a pointed look that screamed '_stay put_'.

Than she turned around, looked at Jenna and nodded to the couch.

Her aunt just gave her a sheepish look and a shrug of the shoulders and sat down, pulling Alaric with her.

"I don't even want to know what that was about. Really, I don't. Let's just get this over with, so Isobel can be on her merry way, shall we?"

Getting nods and murmurs of agreement from all around, she leaned against the liquor cabinet, and waited for Alaric to tell them what he and Damon had found out.

"Okay, so… Damon found a police report back from 1869.

It was… quite disturbing to say the least. Basically, the Founders Council had imprisoned a woman and accused her of being a witch. As she wouldn't confess to it, they reverted to torture.

In the end they got their confession and burned her on the stake. We can't be sure that it is actually her but… the woman _really_ was a witch, albeit probably not one that would have been a danger to Mystic Falls if just left alone. Anyway, being a witch mixed with the quite awful way she died, she would fit the profile."

At his next words he turned around so he could look Bonnie in the eyes, his face a mask of regret.

"It was Emily Bennett."

Xoxoxoxoxoxo

Done for today!

Now, I have one – or two – questions to ask.

First: I'm writing on a new story. BUT, from the 20th November on, I'll be away for six weeks, so I don't know if I should start posting it, or just wait till I'm back. Any suggestions?

Second: As I'll be away, I wanted to know what you prefer. Should I bring this story to a faster end than originally planned, and finish it before I go, or should I make it longer still. But THEN you'll probably have to live with a six week pause as soon as I'm away.

I let you do your thing now – just click on the little button below and let me know what you think (about my questions AND this chapter)!

So long,

Zora


	22. Chapter 22

I am SOOO sorry that this chapter had taken me such a damn long time.

I just was kind of stressed because of my trip, and THEN I had a stupid stomach flu.

But here I am, and I bring a new chapter.

THANKS to my readers and reviewers, you are the best, and THANK YOU to my amaaazing beta AVECIA. She really had much to do with this chapter.

Now, I don't own anything 'bout the Vampire Diaries. Just messing with them for fun.

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Where moments before everyone had been curious about what Damon and Alaric had found out, there was now a grave silence in the room.

Bonnie just sat there, trying to process what Alaric just had said. She knew the others were probably worried about her now, but she had never known her ancestor. Not really.

Sure, a part of Emily had invaded her body once, but that didn't really count.

The only other thought she had, was that this really didn't make any sense.

Emily had tried to prevent Damon from opening the tomb – meaning she had tried to _protect_ Mystic Falls. And now she, what? Had changed her mind and wanted to destroy it? Just like that?

And that was the first thing that came out of her mouth, too.

"Why would she want to destroy Mystic Falls? I mean, I understand that what happened was awful, but she tried to _protect_ the town only a few years back. Why should she change her mind _now_?"

Nobody answered her, they just kept on giving her worried stares – well, most of them anyway.

Katherine had already gone back to manicuring her nails (Elena could clearly see the regret in her face – she probably felt slightly guilty about what had happened to Emily), and Isobel looked like she was far, far away with her thoughts.

Rolling her eyes she tried to defuse the worry of her friends.

"Guys, I'm okay. What did you think would happen? I mean, I didn't know her. The only thing the two of us have in common is the magic. I'm more on edge because we need to find out if we _really_ are up against her, or not. And if we are, how we're gonna stop her."

Suddenly Isobel stood up from were she had been sitting, and started to pace back and forth in front of the fireplace, mumbling under her breath.

After about a minute of this, Jeremy looked between Isobel, Elena and Alaric, before he addressed the last two.

"Is that normal behavior? Because she looks kind of…whacko right now. Compared to the usual queen-bitch attitude, I mean."

Elena tried to stifle her laughter at that.

"Don't worry, it's pretty normal – I think she might be on to something."

"Well, okay then…I was just worried that it's contagious or genetic or something…"

Jeremy and Elena bickered on for a while, unaware at the smile creeping onto Jenna's face because of it.

Other than Elena being here, and not dead, the fact that the siblings finally had buried the hatchet was the best thing that had happened in quite some time.

The two only stopped with their back and forth, as Isobel slumped back into the armchair.

"So, I think I might have an explanation for the 'change of hearts'. Mind you, it's only a guess but… here it goes:

Of course I know all about how Emily took over Bonnie's body, and tried to protect the town.

How she destroyed that amulet or whatever. But I think that wasn't really Emily trying to protect Mystic Falls, but only a _memory_ of hers.

Like, when she was alive, she had put a spell of some sort on the amulet, putting a part of herself into it, to make sure it could never be used to open the tomb.

This memory would be left unharmed by any and everything that happened to Emily _after_ the spell.

Meaning that there were no hard feelings against this town.

Also, it would really make sense that it's Emily we're up against. Just think about it… Bonnie is her direct descendant, therefore, she has the same magic inside her, that once resided in Emily.

No matter how far gone she is from the person she once was – she would recognize the magic. Like…a smell or something.

So when you reached into the world where the dead reside, Emily could've felt it – could have felt _you_ Bonnie. Then all she had to do then was to latch herself onto it, and be done with it."

The room was silent after that, everyone considering what had been said.

Bonnies face, though, fell at the possible explanation. Because even if what she said was true, it still made her sad that her ancestor could've changed so much; could've betrayed everything she once stood for. And that, ultimately, it was her fault that this was happening now. Because she had been unable to let Elena go.

She let out a bitter laugh, not able to hold it in.

Then she stood up, and with a glance at the others, stormed up the stairs, and right into Damon's room.

She had expected that at least Caroline would follow her up – no matter that they weren't teenagers anymore, Caroline never had learned to realize when somebody just needed to be left alone – and was really glad when no one came in after her.

She occupied the chair beside the bed, letting out a tired sigh.

After a few minutes she got the feeling of being watched and opened her eyes, wondering when she had closed them in the first place.

Nobody had entered the room, but Damon had his eyes open and trained on her form.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you, I just needed to get away from the others."

As there was no jab or sarcastic comment coming from Damon, she remembered that he currently wasn't _able_ to speak. Or move, for that matter.

"So, Emily, huh? I _never_ would have thought of her. I mean, what are the odds of _my_ ancestor coming back to life, only to wreak havoc and kill?

That whole situation is just totally screwed up.

Katherine and Isobel are here to help, and Emily is the big, bad evil?

I kind of feel like I fell through the rabbit hole or something. Everything is just upside down… and you really need to hurry up with healing. It's creepy that you don't say anything crude and sarcastic."

Damon rolled his eyes – at least there was one thing he _could_ do to let her know that he was_ not pleased_ with the situation.

"Yeah, this day is for shit. I wish I had never got out of bed in the morning."

Damon couldn't agree more – if he just had stayed in bed with Elena, they would be doing something fun in there now, instead of him just lying here, unable to move.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

A few hours later saw the living room full of people with their noses buried in thick, old books.

Isobel had thought that it might be useful to learn everything about 'vengeful spirits' and every other creature born out of malicious feelings as possible.

And as it was their best bet until now, they went with it.

Elena was upstairs, sitting with Damon while reading her own leather-bound sleeping pill as Stefan came in.

"Hey, I thought you'd want to catch a break. Eat something, or go stretch your feet for a bit.

I'll stay up here in the meanwhile."

At first she wanted to protest, telling Stefan that it was alright, but the loud, gurgling sound her stomach made just then, betrayed her.

Grinning a bit sheepishly, she stroked a strand of hair out of Damons face before she threw a thankful smile in Stefan's direction and left.

Elena hadn't been gone for a whole minute as Damon opened his eyes.

"Hey"

Stefan's eyes snapped up to his brother, a startled look clear on his face.

"…I wasn't aware that you're healed already."

"Am…not. Still not…feeling….very…much."

His voice sounded monotone and strained, like it cost him way too much energy to get the words out.

"Well, then you should take it easy and just sleep."

"Yeah, just…need to….ask….you….something first."

The words still had that robotic sound to them, but Stefan could see that this was serious, so he didn't bother with trying to diffuse Damon.

"Well then, shoot."

"How come…that the report…of Emily's….death was… written…by our…father."

Stefan, of course, knew what Damon meant. Emily had died a few years after them – a few years after their _father_ had died.

He could already see the last of his big secrets wave it's goodbye.

"Are you sure you want to know the answer to that Damon? Because you're not going to like it."

There was no reason to pretend he hadn't known anything. Damon knew him too good for that.

"Don't… care. Tell me."

Sighing, Stefan leaned forwards, resting his elbows on his thighs

"Everything you know about that night is true. I went to confront him, and to say goodbye. We fought, he got injured, and I took his blood.

What I hadn't told you is that I also gave him a bit of _mine_. It's just… as I told you what had happened; you never asked if he survived. You just assumed that he ended up dead, and I let you believe it."

"Why?"

"He shot us Damon. Our own father shot us, and left us to _die_. The two of you had always been fighting, you _never_ got along. I thought it would be better if you thought he was dead. No reason for you to go back and…do something stupid."

For a moment they just stared at each other, both looking tired and drawn, even though their conversation hadn't been longer than a few minutes.

Their father just never had been a pleasant topic for them.

"He never…was all that…fond of…me. I wouldn't….have…bothered…going back just…because he…finally got rid…of the…black sheep of…the family."

Stefans just shook his head, amazed how Damon was able to sound bitter, condescending and sarcastic all at once.

"That's not what I meant. I know you wouldn't have sought revenge for _yourself_. But back then there was still something left of… well, we still were more like the brothers we used to be.

No matter how much you had hated me for making you fully transition – for stealing Katherine. You would have gone and killed him, because _he_ killed _me_. That's what you always did back then. Look out for me, covering up my wrongdoings, and punish whomever tried to make trouble for me. So I'd decided that it would be better for you if you thought I'd killed him. I wouldn't have wanted his death on your conscience. I was already at fault for everything else that went downhill back then. You had still been you back then. Still feeling, still mostly human. I couldn't have let you go and burden yourself with something like that."

A heavy silence hung between them as they remembered the last night they both had been human.

"Not… your fault. Not alone…at least. I was as…much to blame…as you."

"No, you…"

"Yes. Stop…arguing. It's in the…past anyway. It's alright."

Stefan wanted to say more, argue his point… or just stamp his feet in a petulant show of frustration, but Elena came back at that moment, so he just stood up and let her have her seat again.

Just as he reached the door, he got stopped by Damon's voice.

"You know… it's gotten better… in the… last years. Back to…what we once…were."

Stefan didn't reply to that, but he had to blink rapidly to get rid of the burning in his eyes, and bite his lip to stop the goofy grin that wanted to break free.

Finding out that Elena wasn't dead after all, and getting his brother back?

Maybe he had to thank Emily, once this was all over.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

The house was deathly silent, even though there were more than a dozen people inside.

But most of them were cowering on the floor, trying to blend into the shadows, afraid that one wrong move would cost them their lives.

The Kitsune had failed to kill the vampire-turned-human and the teacher, and their mistress wasn't happy. At all.

The living room was in pieces, not one couch or armchair still whole, and the side tables and shelves were nothing more like wood splinters.

She wasn't ready for them to know who she was.

This was her game, and _her_ rules. How _dare_ they interfere?

Damon Salvatore…an insolent brat he had been back in 1864, and an insolent brat he was now.

The boy will wish that he'd died that night, so long ago.

Because when she was done with Damon, there would be nothing left for him. Only the broken pieces of his heart, and the memory of his friends, his family, his _love_, as she'd ripped them apart.

Slowly she started to calm down again, and soon she danced through the room, giving no mind to the rubble on the floor as she hummed a happy tune.

Her eyes were sparkling, and her lips were drawn into a smile.

But the sparkle wasn't telling of happiness, but of insanity, and the smile looked more like a grimace, like a death mask than anything else.

And outside of her line of sight, her creatures and servants – the first few of what would be an army – shrank more into the shadows.

Because not even the most gruesome of them could muster such childlike glee over the musings of bloodshed and murder.

Xoxoxoxo

The first real scene for our big bad! Hope you liked it – and I hope the brotherly scene between Damon and Stefan wasn't too sappy!

Just tell me what you think, you just have to click on the little button below and write a few words for me^^.

So long,

Zora


	23. Chapter 23

I'm back again. And this time, actually with a new chapter of this story, and not with a oneshot *gg*.

Thanks to all my readers and reviewers (ESPECIALLY the reviewers!).

And, of course, to AVECIA. Because without her great beta work, this would be awful to read!

Now, I don't own anything 'bout TVD (or anything else besides the plotline), I only mess with them because it's too much fun to _not_ do it^^.

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Damon was frustrated, pissed off, and on edge. It was way after sunset, but he could hear that the others were still down in the living room, searching for anything that might help them.

All he wanted to do right now, was going down there and help. Sure, it wouldn't be the most interesting of things, but at least it would be better than just lying around.

But as he tried to stand up and go down earlier that evening, Elena had shot him a glare so icy, that he had instantly lay back down, and had not dared to set a foot out of bed since.

It was ridiculous, really. His movements were a little sluggish, his limbs slow to obey, but they were functioning; he was _alright_.

There was no reason for him to play deathly wounded. But the woman was, sadly, even more stubborn than him.

At least she had brought him a few of the books to look through, even if he was confined to his bed (he had no problem, being confined to his bed… if only she would be there with him, and naked, that is).

He felt like some kid that had been sent to his room for uncouth behavior – the problem was, he knew Elena, and when she had her mind set on something, there was no moving her from it.

Right now the teacher was stuck here with him, because Elena went to get some of her stuff from… wherever she had left it, and she didn't want him to be alone.

Suffice to say that he would rather be alone, than be at the end of Alaric's guilty, nervous glances.

Sighing, he snapped his book shut with more force than was probably necessary, making the other man nearly jump out of the chair.

"Jesus, man. Don't _do_ that!"

Damon just snorted and fixed a glare at him.

"I'll stop, if you do, too."

Alaric looked questioningly at him, not understanding what he meant.

"Stop looking like you're at fault for everything wrong in the world. You're like my brother sometimes – all self flagellating and feeling guilty for _nothing_."

He could see that the teacher had understood now.

"Well… this was my fault. Although, I have no idea why you got in the way of that thing. You should've just let it kill me – it's not like I wouldn't have opened my eyes again. It did anyway, later."

Rolling his eyes, Damon sat up a little straighter – ignoring that it took way more effort than should be possible for such a simple task.

"Sometimes you are _really_ slow – especially for a damn teacher. The Kitsune was aiming for your face, and you _idiot_ lifted your hands up to protect yourself. It would've sliced right through your hands, severing them from the rest of you. See where I'm going with that?"

Alaric blinked a few times, before realization dawned on his face, and he quickly dropped his eyes to the ring, still safely on his finger.

"Yeah, I see you got it. Now, stop taking the blame for things you are not to blame for. And as you are so fond of acting like Stefan, I'll tell you the same thing I told him: You don't get to feel guilty for something I did. My actions belong to me, and me _alone_, and I carry the blame for them. Understood?"

The other man just nodded, and then went back to his book, looking as uncomfortable as Damon felt.

The two of them got along quite alright – as long as they could tease and mock each other.

Neither of them liked to confess that they actually liked the other, so they usually steered clear of any and all conversations of feelings.

At least the teacher had stopped with his stupid guilt-ridden looks.

A little victory, if nothing else good came out of that damn night.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Elena had made short work of the distance between the Boarding House and the quaint little Bed & Breakfast she had left her stuff at.

She packed her toiletries back into the suitcase, and did the same with the discarded clothes she had thrown over the back of a chair on the night she had arrived.

Looking around the room one more time – making sure she hadn't forgotten anything, she took her suitcase and a long, cloth covered bundle.

She went to the counter, gave back the key and paid for her stay, and then made her way to the little parking lot behind the B&B.

Opening the trunk of the black 67 Chevy Impala, she threw her suitcase in, and then took her place behind the steering wheel. The cloth-wound bundle ended up on her passenger seat.

A big grin crept onto her face as the engine roared to life. Damon would _love_ that baby.

As would her brother, most likely. Maybe she'd leave it to him, once this newest disaster had been dealt with. She knew that everyone probably thought she would stay in Mystic Falls now, but she grew accustomed to her journeys, and sooner or later (sooner, rather than later, she would get itchy feet, and leave again).

Of course she had to talk to Damon about that – if he absolutely wanted to stay, she would, too, no matter how desperately she wanted a change of scenery.

Not a chance in hell that she would leave him again. It had been hard enough to stay away all those years. But she knew that she needed the distance – they both did. Damon to find his way back to his human side, and Elena to learn how _not _to be entirely human.

If they had done that together, they would have lived in their own, private little bubble of happiness – and as nice as that sounded, it just wasn't what they had needed at the time.

But now they were secure in what they were, and could enjoy their time.

Well, they could start enjoying it, once they had dealt with this little… bump in the road that was Emily.

She took her eyes off the road for a moment to look at the clock on the dashboard, and as she trained them back on the street again, she instantly pushed down on the /brake.

She screeched to a halt only inches in front of the cloaked figure standing in the middle of the road.

Swearing softly, she took the bundle from her passenger seat, and ripped the cloth off.

Throwing a quick glance out of the windshield, she saw that the figure was still standing there, not moving an inch, and seemingly waiting for her to do something.

So she grabbed the sheathed sword that had been under the cloth, and exited her car.

She slung the scabbard over her shoulder, securing it with the leather belt that hung from it and unsheathed the sword – and was promptly laughed at in the face.

"Oh really, little Elena-dearest? You want to attack me with a sword? I'd have thought that dying would have driven that sweet naïveté right out of your bones.

Let me tell you, even if I were here in the flesh, and not just a projection of the mind…. Not even then would it be possible to kill me with that.

And now put it away, you won't need it. I'm not here to fight. I just want to… talk, for a little while."

Elena didn't sheath the sword, but she relaxed her posture slightly, and pointed the tip to the ground.

"Fine, talk."

The figure pushed the hood off her head, and revealed black hair, and smooth, dark skin.

Emily. She looked just like the old picture that Bonnie had shown her once.

"You should go. Just walk away, turn your back on this town and its citizens, and everything will be alright.

Because of you, I found my way back into this mortal plain, so I am willing to spare your life.

But only if you go. Now. Just get into the car and drive away."

Elena looked incredulously at the woman in front of her.

"Are you crazy?"

It was a rhetorical question, but Emily cocked her head sideways, and had a thoughtful expression on her face, before she smiled brilliantly.

"Why, yes, of course I am. Mad as a… what was that phrase…. Oh, yes! Mad as a hatter…I really like these modern collocations.

But that's alright; it makes everything just that much easier.

But alas, I guess this is you, declining my offer?"

Elena just looked on, not knowing what to say or do; but then again, she didn't really need to do anything, because Emily seemed only too happy to hold the whole conversation on her own.

"Oh well, you can't say I haven't tried. Just know that I won't offer it again. I have to go now. Places to be, people to wreak revenge on, you know? Until we meet again, my sweet Elena!"

And just like that, she was gone, leaving Elena alone in the middle of the road, sword still drawn, and looking at an empty road.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Elena stormed into the living room of the Boarding House like she was chased by a horde of hellhounds.

Her eyes were wide open, and she looked around frantically, sword drawn and ready to attack anything that might threaten her friends and family.

As she realized that everyone was okay and, in fact, looking at her like she's gone crazy, she sighed a breath of relief and slumped into the nearest armchair.

She noticed that Damon was sitting on the couch opposite from her, but at the moment she just was way too relieved that everyone was okay to be pissed off that he wasn't still in bed. Also, it helped to see that he was in one piece, and not lying on his bed, choking on his own blood – or something equally horrifying.

After a few silent moments, Caroline cleared her throat.

"Is there a reason that you stormed inside like Xena the warrior-princess? And what the hell is that _thing_ you're holding?"

Elena combed her hair out of her face with on hand, and with the other laid the sword on the coffee-table in front of her, and then put the scabbard down right beside it.

"It's a sword, Caroline. And I thought you might be in trouble."

"Well, I can see that it is a sword. But it looks kind of funny… like, its half made out of wood or something."

At that, Elena grinned.

"I guess that's because it _is_ made half out of wood. And before you ask: It's like this so I won't have to carry ten thousand and one different weapons with me at all times. With this thing, I can stab, cut – and even behead, if need be – nearly everything. The wood makes it a deadly weapon for vampires – I just have to stab them right through the heart. Then there is the cold iron of the actual blade – it is a surefire way to kill most fae. And there is silver inlaid in it, too."

She could see that Alaric's eyes got all wide and sparkly – she should have known that the man would love this sword, what with his affinity for fancy weaponry.

Rolling her eyes again, she picked the sword up again, and held it out so Alaric could take it. He nearly snatched it out of her hands, closely inspecting it, mumbling under his breath.

Like a child on Christmas.

"Well, as interesting this little lesson was… won't you tell us why you thought we'd be in trouble, only because you leave us alone for a bit? Spit it out already."

"It's… it's nothing Katherine. I just spent too much time with my own thoughts and got paranoid."

She knew she should tell them what happened, but for some reason she couldn't bring herself to do it.

What was there to tell, anyway? That she had waved goodbye to the chance to safe her own hide?

All of a sudden she stood up and made her way to the stairs – right now she was actually glad that Damon had coaxed someone into helping him down here. It meant she would have his room to herself.

"Excuse me, please. I think I'm going to bed now, I haven't slept much in the last few days."

With that, she used her enhanced speed, just to be sure that there would be no questions.

She should've known better, though, because just seconds after she let herself fall backwards into Damon's bed, the door opened and closed in quick succession, and the mattress tipped down beside her.

Katherine – of course –saw right through her lie.

"So. You want to tell me what really had happened? And don't tell me you're just sleep deprived. I've seen you making it a few days without a minute of sleep, and still being able to kick ass."

Elena rolled her head to the side, so she could look the other woman into the face.

Sometimes it was strange to look at her, because it was as if she looked right into the past.

Katherine still looked – and always _would_ look – like she had when she was 17. She was accustomed to it by now, but sometimes it was still creepy.

Right now, Katherine wore the expression that told her that she wouldn't back down, no matter what.

"Look, it's... nothing really important. I had a run-in with Emily. Or...with a projection of her, or something. She told me that if I leave Mystic Falls, she would '_spare my life_'.

She was sure of herself, and kind of creepy, and she spooked me quite a bit. I'd been afraid that she would come here – in the flesh, this time – and do something to prove her point.

I'll have to get my car, later. I moved it to the side of the road and ran here as fast as I could."

Katherine said nothing at first, just took her hand and held on fast.

"Don't worry 'Lena. It's going to be alright."

She smiled at the vampiress, glad that she had followed her upstairs. Vicious and deadly or not, at times like this, Elena knew that she had done the right thing as she had fought to find the humanity in Katherine Pierce.

Xoxoxoxoxox

Aaaand done! I hid a reverence to another TVshow in there (and no, I'm NOT talking about the Xena comment, because that was hardly hidden *lol*), did you find it?

Also, I hope I'll get at least another chapter done before I take my bow for six weeks (I'll be gone from the 20th of November, until the 28th of December), but I'm not sure yet, because I'll have not much time.

But I promise I'll try!

Now, tell me what you thought about this chapter, you just have to click on the little button below. Reviews are love, people!

So long,

Zora


	24. Chapter 24

I'M BACK!

And you have NO idea how glad I am about that. I know it's been a while – even longer than I thought, because I've had this stupid writers block for this story as I came back from my trip – but now I'm back, and I can finally start with the last few parts of this story. I guess there will be between four and six chapter left.

Now: THANKS to all my reviewers, and EXTRA thanks to my lovely beta AVECIA (who's even better in real life than I imagined). Thanks you, I couldn't do this without you.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything 'bout TVD, just messing with them for my own, twisted fun.

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

The boarding house was eerily silent, even though it wasn't even ten O'clock yet – but somehow, everyone seemed to be stuck in silence.

Katherine and Elena had fallen asleep at one point, still lying on Damon's bed, facing each other, as if they just closed their eyes in mid-conversation. Jenna and Alaric were both sitting in the kitchen, staring into their coffee cups as if they held the answers to all the big questions in the universe, while most of the others still had their noses buried in old books.

Bonnie though, was sitting outside on the back lawn, gazing up into the stars, looking like she was buried underneath a load way too heavy for her.

She was soon joined by (a still slightly limping) Damon. For a few minutes they sat there, lost in their own thoughts, not making a sound.

Then he sighed and lifted his right arm in a silent invitation. Not needing to be told twice, Bonnie scooted closer and snuggled into the one armed embrace of her friend.

A few years back, nobody had thought that something like this might be even remotely possible – yet now not only could they spend time in companionable silence (read: NOT trying to rip each other's throat out – literally, in Damon's case) but they also did it out of their own free will, enjoying it, even.

But many things had happened since then; things that had turned their whole lives upside down.

And now, moments like this, were what they needed to keep their sanity intact. Just sitting, not talking – but still knowing that the other was around. Because there was no one else who knew quite as well how they had felt, back when Elena was gone.

But now it wasn't the pain of missing a loved one that was the problem. Now it was the guilt that was weighing her down – guilt that most likely it's her fault that, again, there were problems too big for any of them to handle on the horizon. All because she had acted on an impulse, acted on the simple wish to have her best friend back. It's not that she wasn't glad that Elena wasn't six feet under, feeding the worms. But Damon had said it, even while she was doing the spell_. Dead things should _stay_ dead. _But she hadn't listened. She had been successful with bringing her friend back, but in the same instance, she also gave Damon a heartbeat and the need to breath and she enabled the enraged, mad spirit of a powerful witch with a way back into the world of the living.

The bad thing wasn't even that it had happened like this – what really got to her, was the fact that, even with everything she knew now, she would do it all over again.

Because never in her life had something hurt so much as loosing Elena – and being partially at fault for it. And never did something feel so good, as the joy as she realized that it had worked, that she had brought her back.

And that was the whole problem. Even with all the things happening right now, she couldn't quite bring herself to regret a single thing.

"You know, sitting out here and brooding yourself into a stupor, isn't going to help you a single bit. Leave that to my brother – he's _way_ better at it. It's not as if you knew this was going to happen."

Bonnie had to laugh, then. It was as if he was reading her mind.

"Well, no, I didn't. But if I remember right – and believe me, I do –you warned me about the consequences of spells like this. Of the consequences that messing with death usually brings.

I just didn't want to listen. And look what we got out of it. A vengeful witch and nothing but trouble."

Damon was silent for a moment, as if contemplating his answer, even though she knew that _he_ knew what he was going to say anyway. But she bit her tongue and played along like she always did.

"Sure. But we also have Elena – way tougher than she used to be. I say there's no use losing your head over this right now. You can do that once we've run out of options. For now I say you just use your brain to help find a solution.

Find a way to send her back where she came from – or just simply kill her. Or maybe… I don't know, maybe there is a way to make her into the person she once was. I mean, it's not like she was always like this. Snarky, bitchy and a little too proud, yes, no doubt. But she also always wanted to _protect_ the humans, not … drench the streets in their blood or something equally demented.

There has to be _some_ part of her that's still like that."

She had listened closely to what he had to say. Mostly, if he took his time thinking something through, there was at least _some_ good advice to be found in his words. And she was glad she had listened, because it kind of made sense. Of course she hadn't always been like this. What people did to her, had made her into that.

Giving his shoulder one last squeeze – letting him know that she appreciated his help; appreciated him being the friend he was – she got up, and went back inside.

Damon stayed behind, turning his gaze to the dark woods, blackness so impenetrable that not even _his_ eyes could break it.

A cold shudder run down his spine all of a sudden and he wondered if the words he had spoken only minutes before were true. He wasn't going to blame Bonnie for this newest disaster. But it was true then, and it still rang true: never mess with things beyond the grave.

He got up abruptly and, too, went back into the house, not bothering to glance back into the night.

It held nothing but shadows and questions. Shadows too thick for him find his way through, and questions with no answers anywhere in sight.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

As Damon went to his room hours later, the two women were still on the bed but only one of them was still asleep.

Katherine was sitting with her back to the headboard, leafing through one of the books he had left on his bedside table earlier. Elena was still very much asleep, nearly not visible under a heap of blankets and pillows – what he actually could see, was ridiculously adorable.

He had the feeling that she wouldn't like to be called that, but that's something she had to live with, especially looking like that.

Right now though, Elena was asleep, and Katherine was drilling holes through his skull with the glance she was throwing his way.

"Right… care to tell me what I've done wrong to deserve a look like that? Or are you just pissed that you don't have her to yourself anymore? Poor little Katherine, left on the sidelines, all alone."

Usually, he would know that it wasn't a good idea to try to make her angry, but he had had one of the worst days in his life today, and he needed to blow off some steam.

But against his hope, she wasn't already jumping up, trying to rip him apart– instead she just sat there staring at him.

As he started to think that she wouldn't answer him at all, or in any way, she tipped her head to the side and _smiled_.

She bloody smiled!

"See, that's the difference between you and me, Damon. I know that, no matter what, she won't forget about me. It may be that her time is preoccupied with other things every once in a while, but she sure as hell will always remember to have time for me. And I _know_ that, without a single ounce of doubt. Whereas _you_ will always be unsure. You always knew that she had been with Stefan first – that once upon a time, she came near to _hating_ you. Tell me, has she said those three little words already? Did she tell you that she loves you? That she is _in_ love with you? Or are you still waiting for that… after all these years, still waiting?"

She had gotten up, and was closer with every sentence she spoke, the smile turning into a malevolent grin as she went.

"_Poor little Damon_, still waiting to be loved."

With that, she went out of the room, closing the door very carefully.

Yeah, usually he knew better then to raise her hackles. Bitch hadn't changed a bit.

"I would fake sympathy, but it's not as if you didn't know that the results to your words would be unpleasant."

Well, not really asleep, then. He could have lived without her hearing Katherine's words.

"That being said… you shouldn't take her too serious. At least, not when she's pissed, and trying to hurt you. She can be quite mean if she wants to be."

He lifted one eyebrow at that because, really? _She can be quite mean? _Understatement of the century. But he let it go because whatever history he and Katherine had, it was quite obvious that the woman had a soft spot for Elena, and therefore treated her different from… well, anyone else there is.

"I know _that_. No worries there."

As he made his way to his bed, he left a trail of clothing behind, and by the time he reached it, the only thing he was wearing was his boxers.

Despite the fact that he spent most of the day in bed, he was still dead tired; drawn out as if he had been running a marathon.

Sinking into the sheets beside her, he pulled her close, holding her to him as if he intended to never let go again.

His nose buried in her neck, he breathed in deeply and finally relaxed. Being here, with her in his arms, felt like heaven and home.

"Hey, what is it with you? You seem awfully quiet tonight. Don't tell me what she said _really_ got to you."

Sighing he turned, so he was lying on his back, with her head cushioned on his chest.

"Not exactly, no. It's just… what she said kind of… rang true. Everyone can see that the two of you are close. You've been travelling around with her for years now, never growing tired of her company. And it's nice to have you here now, to be allowed to _be_ with you but… how long will that last? When will you start to grow tired of _me_? I love you, Elena. I have for years now. And I know that I can't force you to feel the same - I wouldn't _want_ to. I…."

He was interrupted by Elena, pressing her lips to his. She lifted her head up, and was looking down at him, eyes soft, and a gentle smile on her lips.

"Have you been here these last few days? Or better yet, do you remember that you have been the only person I've been in contact with, all this time? I needed time away, time to get a grasp on everything that has changed with me. But I never once stopped thinking about you. I. Love. You. Don't let anybody tell you differently."

He would have said something to that, really, he would. It just seemed way more important to kiss her, to draw her close.

So he let his actions speak for himself as he turned them around again, and got rid of the rest of their clothes.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

The glass she had been holding, shattered in her hand, the red wine mingling with the blood that dripped out of a few glass cuts.

How _dare_ they? They should be cowering under their covers, like little children afraid of the dark. Now that they knew that they were up against her, they should be trying to find a way out of their mess. Try to run or hide, or even come to her and _plead_! But instead, they were having nice, heartfelt conversations, and a roll in the hay.

The nerve! But oh, how they will regret this, once she was ready to strike.

She turned around on her heels, the broken glass making crunching noises under her shoes, and strolled deeper into the house. Her first few steps were marked by little droplets of blood, but soon they stopped falling, as the wounds healed, not even leaving a scar.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

A/N: Right, so I know this has been a little bit shorter than the last few chapters, but as I already said, I had problems with getting into the story again, after this one of a break. BUT, I really do believe that the next chapters will come easier to me again. Now, I'm done for today, and it's your turn: just click on the little button below and tell me what you think. Reviews are love, people!

So long,

Zora


	25. Chapter 25

So, I know it's been too long since my last update (again) but I REALLY had my problems with this chapter. BUT, it's here now and I hope you all like it! Now, as always I thank my readers and reviewers AND my lovely beta AVECIA. You are AWESOME!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything 'bout TVD, I'm just messing with them for fun!

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

The last three days seem to have gone by in some sort of haze. All they did was eat, sleep (or, at least spend time in bed…) and research. They called in sick to their respective jobs, told friends that weren't part of… all this crazy, that there had been a family emergency… all in all, they were AWOL from the whole world, barricaded up in the Boarding House.

At least, until Isobel all but smashed in the door on her way in, looking drawn, tired, excited and glad at the same time. She spared not a glance at anyone else, and instead simply made a beeline for her daughter, grabbed her wrist and pulled her upstairs.

"Damon, Bennett, move your asses, I need to talk to you." She didn't even look at them, just went on, up the stairs.

Bonnie and Damon looked at each other, then shrugged their shoulder and did what they were told. It's not that they would usually just jump to follow _anyone's_ orders, but they could use at least a _little_ chance of pace.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Isobel closed the door to Damon's bedroom impatiently, then strode over to the windows, closed them too, and drew the curtains shut for good measure. She hesitated a few moments before she turned to face them again, but then she straightened her shoulders and leaned against the desk standing right in front of the windows.

She was silent for another moment, and then she looked Elena straight in the eyes.

"So, I found out how to send Emilie back where she belongs. Or, I found _more_ than one way, although… not all of them I would suggest."

Elena blinked in surprise. She had known that Isobel was supposed to be good at finding out stuff no one else did, but really? They had been searching for days now, and had not even a _hint_ of what to do.

"Well then, tell us about it, stop beating around the bush already."

Surprised or not, she wasn't about to let it get the best of her. The sooner this was over, the sooner she could start to live her life with Damon.

"Right, first you need a few explanations, otherwise this won't make sense. So, the only thing that makes it even _possible_ for Emilie to stay on this… mortal plain, is that she is bound to Bonnies magic, and the life-force of both Elena and Damon. I don't believe that she even knows that herself, otherwise she wouldn't have tried to get Damon killed. That being said… the first option to get rid of _her_, is to rid her of her _magic_. Because she needs that magic to even cling to your life-force. I wouldn't recommend that though, because it might just turn out to wipe any sign of life out in a 100 mile radius. That's the problem with magic – when it's settled somewhere, it doesn't like to leave again. Also, ripping the magic out of _her_ would also mean that little-Miss-raise-the-dead here would lose hers. Because of the family line."

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

_Ten minutes later_

"The last possibility is quite simple, actually. Just go and kill her. Rip her head _off_, or her heart _out; _stake her, run her over with a damn _car_. It doesn't really matter, because she should be able to die like everyone else. The only problem with that is that you have to be able to get close to her first."

Elena stared at Isobel for a moment, and then turned around to look at Damon and Bonnie.

As she started to discuss the options with them, Isobel left her place in front of the desk, to leave the room. As she passed Elena, she laid her hand on the shoulder of her daughter for just a moment, squeezing before she went out.

Downstairs, the others still had their noses buried in various books, researching. Or at least, they pretended to. If someone looked a little closer, they would see the eyes, not quite trained on the pages, or that someone stared at a text in a language too old to be known anymore or – in Jeremys case- held the book upside down.

Shaking her head, she stood still halfway to the door.

"You can stop with your useless attempt at getting any smarter. I have figured out what to do about the not-as-dead-as-she-should-be-witch. Just wait for Elena and her two puppies up there, she will explain everything. All you have left to do, is actually do it… I guess that's just how this world works though. Some people think, some people do the handiwork."

With that, she left the Boarding House again, nearly as dramatic as she entered.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

A few hours later, everything was explained, and plans were made. Everyone had been thrilled beyond believe that it actually was possible to kill Emilie. It had been a wild goose chase up until this point. Not knowing if it would be possible to send her back where she belonged to or if, how.

But now all they had to do was fight; something they knew how to do with closed eyes by now - some more than others (the bloody images of Elena ripping that Kitsune apart still fresh in everyone's mind).

Right now, they were sitting in the parlor, all eyes trained on Bonnie. She was sitting on the floor, a lit candle in front of her, and a piece of paper clutched in her hand.

She was mumbling something under her breath, and the flame danced around as though someone was trying to blow it out. As her chanting got louder, she took a short, sharp dagger and made a little cut in her hand and let the blood drop onto the paper. It was not something of Emilie's but as they had the same blood – the same _magic_ - flowing through their veins, it would do the trick to get the message written on the paper to her ancestor. Then she held the paper over the flame and let it burn down, till nothing but ashes remained. Her chanting died down again and finally she stopped entirely. She looked at the others and gave them a slightly bitter smile.

"It's done. She got the message."

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

It's been a bad day for Emilie. First, she woke up still in a bad mood because of the lack of _fear_ coming from the Salvatore Boarding House. Then she realized that all the nice creatures that had been coming… well, _stopped_ coming. In fact, they started to leave again. Some out of fear of her, some out of boredom. As if it was her fault that she had to wait for the next full moon for her plans to fall into place. And now, not even that might work out, because if more of her creatures started to leave, she wouldn't have enough left for the sacrifice.

But right now, nothing of that mattered. Finally, _finally_ something happened that made her day more bearable. In her hands, she held a slightly singed piece of paper, covered in nice, cursive handwriting.

_As I am not a person who likes to make things more complicated than they already are, I will keep this short. With this, I challenge you to a duel, just us two. You might bring witnesses or not, I don't care. Meet me in two days time from today at nightfall. I will wait for you on Wickery Bridge near the old Cemetery._

_Elena_

So, the little girl wanted to challenge her? Well, then so be it.

With a laugh that chased goosebumps down the backs of the few creatures remaining in her house, she twirled around once, before she went back into her bedroom.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

The next two days were spent like they lived in some kind of bubble, unaware of the outside world. Watching movies, eating together and generally behaving like nothing in the world could touch them. As soon as it started to get dark outside, they disappeared into their own rooms, spending quality time with their significant other, or just using the time to relax if there was none.

Now though, they had to stop playing the pretending game, as the time to leave drew nearer and nearer. Elena wandered from room to room, burning the memory of this house and the hours spent together into her brain, not wanting to forget a single moment. She had been gone for such a long time, and still she had been welcomed back with open arms and no hard words. Deep down, a feeling of regret started to bloom. Regret that she had herself been led by feelings of anger and disappointment and just left back then. Maybe if she had stayed all of this could've been prevented. She would have learned of Emilie sooner, before she grew to be strong enough to be a threat.

Shaking her head, she tried to get rid of those thoughts. It's not as if they would help her right now. She should concentrate on the matter at hand, and not on should-have-beens and would-have-beens. It would only cloud her thoughts and that wouldn't do. So instead she went in search of the others, making sure that there were ready. Or at least, as ready as they could ever be.

She found Alaric and Jenna in one of the rooms in the cellar. Sometime during the last six years, this room had been made into a weapon chamber of sorts – she could see wooden stakes, weird mechanisms, darts full of vervain and a collection of other sorted weapons. Her aunt and ex-teacher worked hand in hand, preparing everything, making sure it worked without problems. It was a testament on how close those two were, that Jenna didn't even make a grimace at handling the weapons.

A few rooms over, she could hear the voices of Stefan, Katherine and Damon. She didn't need to go there to know that there were helping themselves to a few blood bags, needing to fuel their strength. Well, Stefan and Katherine did, anyway. Damon, most likely, just was there to keep his brother company, and try to get a rise out of Katherine.

Smiling to herself, she went upstairs again. In the kitchen, she stumbled over Tyler and Jeremy, making faces at each other and eating. Across from them were Caroline and Matt, preparing a few pistols; loading them with wooden, vervain-soaked bullets. She was pretty sure that Caroline had liberated those things from the police station. It was one of the strangest sights she'd ever seen. And she had seen a _lot_. But Caroline – fashionable, sometimes shallow, naïve Caroline – and sweet, sweet Matt, sitting at a kitchen table and loading up pistols… not something she would have expected to happen. _Ever_.

That left only one person unaccounted for. And just as she had thought, she found Bonnie in the parlor, studying her Grimoir. She could see that her friend was nervous, but at the same time, she radiated confidence and self-awareness. It was obvious that, over the past years, she had grown into her powers, was sure of them and of her. She knew what she could and could _not_ do.

She crossed the room slowly and finally let herself sink into the couch right across from Bonnie, not interrupting her, but just taking in the sight of the young witch. There wasn't anything left to do for her, anyway. She was dressed, her sword waited for her by the door, and there was nothing that was left unsaid. Now all she had to do was wait for the others to get ready, and the time to go to arrive.

She knew she should probably be a little more worried about the outcome, but for some reason wasn't. Whatever might happen today, she would make sure that her friends and family stayed alive and well. There was not one reason to waste any thought about a not-so-happy outcome, not when nothing was set in stone yet.

Slowly but steadily the parlor got fuller again. First Alaric and Jenna, both of them depositing a load of weapons on the couch-table. Shortly after them, they were joined by Stefan, Katherine and Damon – Katherine taking the place right beside Elena and sticking her tongue out to Damon. Damon, in turn, just rolled his eyes, pulled Elena to her feet, sank down onto the couch and placed her on his lap. One eyebrow raised, he challenged the vampires to say something, but she kept her mouth shut. 1:0 for him.

The last to arrive were Jeremy, Tyler, Caroline and Matt.

They all were silent for a few minutes, basking in the feeling of _together_ and _family_. And then, nearly as one, they came to their feet and made their way to the door, most of them grabbing one or two of the assorted weapons on their way out. Elena and Damon were the last ones in the room, and as she took up her sword she looked around again, not sure if she would ever be here again.

Then she turned off the light, tugged on Damon's hand and followed the others. Time to get this over with, time to get the last obstacle to a good life out of the way.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Aaaand here we go again. Now, there's only two or three chapters left – and that includes the epilogue. Depending on how long I'm going to draw out the fight, it will take up one or two chapters, and then I'm done with this story. I also have already decided if this is going to have a happy end or not (I'm NOT telling you, FYI), but you can still vote for whichever you'd prefer. Who knows, maybe I change my mind^^. So, all YOU have left to do, is click on the little button below to let me know what you think of that chapter! Reviews are love, people!

So long,

Zora


	26. Chapter 26

Alright people… here's the next chapter, and there will be no flowers and sunshine in this one, so be prepared! As always, a huge thanks to my readers and reviewers and EXTRA big thanks to AVECIA (go read her stories, they are AWESOME), my lovely beta.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything 'bout TVD, I just mess with them for fun!

On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

It was eerily silent as they arrived at the clearing. The only sound to be heard was the gurgling of the river as it flowed nearby. Everything else was mute; no birds chirping, no wind rustling through the leaves on the trees, no animals rushing through the woods. But they still knew that they weren't alone. The air was thick with tension and smelled of magic and blood. Not even figuratively, but literally. The rusty-sweet smell of fresh blood, and the mix of brimstone and burned ozone that was a telltale sign of something magical nearby.

Elena could have thought of a thousand other places she'd rather be at right now but… this town was her home, and the people beside and behind her, were her friends. She would protect them with everything she had, no matter what.

"Oh Emilie! Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

Well, it was probably not the best way to go about, but she wanted this to be over with as quickly as possible. And if that meant to make the witch angry, then so be it.

"Well, you are here, little Elena. And you brought aaaall your little friends. I thought that this is between the two of us? But all the better, now I can wipe them off the face of the earth in one go. Saves me time."

Before Elena answered, she risked a glance into the dark of the woods behind Emilie, and saw what she had expected. The yellow glow of predator eyes, and the gleam of the moon that reflected from claws and canines.

"No, I am not alone. But I honor my word, and the only one to attack you, will be me. I doubt though, that those… creatures you have with you, are here to look and observe. On my part, it was self preservation that made me bring my friends. I don't think the same can be said of you, or am I wrong."

Instead of another jibe, Emilie threw her a nearly serene looking smile.

"No, of course they are not here to look. They have been bound to a house and boredom for weeks now. They need bloodshed and pain. And as it is your fault – yours and your friends – that they had to lie low, I thought it only to be fair for them to come here tonight, and have a little fun."

The smile had turned into the grin of a maniac before the witch suddenly moved and attacked. It was a good thing that Elena counted on something like so, or else the dagger that bounced off her sword, would be firmly lodged in her throat right now. But as it was, that was all that was needed as a starting sign. In minutes the once silent clearing was overcome with shouts, screams and swears. And in the middle of it all were Elena and Emilie, circling each other. The witch with her short dagger, the blade gleaming with some sort of magic, and the other woman with her sword.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Damon tried to have one eye on Elena at all times, but that was anything _but_ an easy task. The women moved too fast most of the time; the fact that for every creature that fell by his hands, there were two more coming. He had no idea where they were coming from – or _what_, exactly, most of them were – but it seemed like a never-ending stream. He was just lucky that they were really dumb, not even _trying_ to attack as some sort of a closed front.

Every time he did manage to catch a glimpse at the two women in the center of the clearing, it was the same picture. Elena, lips drawn into a thin line, expression hard and ready to strike; Emilie, still with the scary grin on her face, looking as if she planned on dancing, and not killing someone. His father and those other idiots of the Founders Council had managed to drive her into madness, and the time she had spent dead, hadn't helped that in the least. Even under normal circumstances he would be worried about having someone like Emilie as an enemy. But now she was unpredictable at best, and it made her even more dangerous. He wanted to do something, anything to help Elena, to make sure that she survived this. But he also knew that Elena probably had better chances at winning this than he would've had. So he did what he could to help: decimating the number of possible other attackers.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Bonnie was standing at the edge of the clearing, eyes half closed and chanting under her breath. She wasn't much of a fighter, but she could make sure that the other did as good as possible, giving them a little more strength, making them – if just for the moment – a little stronger then they usually were, and helping them healing a little bit faster when they were injured. That was all she could do at that moment, and she hoped it would be enough in the end.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Hacking and ripping through creatures that, by all means, should only exist in books, Katherine cursed a blue streak. She was probably a little bit of a hypocrite, what with her being a vampire and all that, but still. It was one thing to be a vampire, mostly human-looking; it was another thing entirely to believe in a thing like a Pan or a troll… no-brainer, really.

Also… it was a good distraction from Elena. She couldn't afford to be preoccupied right now or she would end up dead. The permanent kind. But it was still damn hard to not look out for the other woman, because that was exactly what she's been doing the last few years. Looking out for her descendant, growing closer to her every day. First, she had been her mentor, and then slowly they became friends. And over time, even that line blurred, and now they were family; as close as the twins they had played in the beginning, as they still had looked the same. But Elena had power. She was strong, stronger than anyone else she knew. And not just physically. She just had to believe in her, and everything would work out. It had to. She couldn't lose her, because she was the only thing that kept her humanity together. Without her, she probably would go back to being the cold hearted, murdering bitch. She might love Stefan, but sadly that was not quite enough to keep the demon and the human in her together, fighting the same fight.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

It could have been minutes or hours since they began to fight – the sense of time long gone – and still there had been no winners. There were many dead lying on the ground, creatures exotic in looks but not strong enough to win a fight with a vampire or even a human, if said human was prepared and knew what he or she was doing. But it was tiring, for all of them, friend or enemy. No one was without injuries – cuts, bruises, broken bones – and everyone was tired by now. Everyone but Emilie, or so it seemed. She was still grinning, taunting her opponent, and wide awake with the thrill of death all around her.

But the grin started to look forced, and her expression grew to one of boredom as the minutes ticked by.

"You know my sweet little Elena, this is staring to tire me. I have been very easy on you – I thought you might be a little bit stronger, a little bit more of a challenge. But it seems that I've been overestimating you."

Elena knew that the witch was too strong for her, too powerful. But she had owed it to Damon to at least try and defeat her this way. But she was drawn out, tired and injured. She was barely able to lift her left arm, the flesh from shoulder to elbow ripped open, ligaments torn to shreds. When she moved her upper body, she could feel the ends of broken ribs grating together, sending burning sensations throughout her body. She couldn't procrastinate anymore, she had to end this. And she knew exactly how.

Right behind Emilie, the river was still flower along, deep even right at its edge. She turned around for a moment, searching and finding Damon. Their eyes locked at the same moment, and she whispered something to him, making sure he could read the words off her lips. Then she turned around again, threw the sword aside and ran at Emilie, tackling her into the water. The other woman was so surprised at the sudden action, that she couldn't do anything to stop them from hurtling over the edge of the river, and right into the water.

With their heavy clothing and Elena's sword still clutched in her one hand, they sank quickly to the riverbed. Emilie tried to struggle lose from her, but Elena just tightened her grip and held on.

"_Do you really think you can get rid of me like this? I can just form a shield around me. You're just harming yourself this way."_

The words were only in her head, but still full of ridicule and mocking laughter. But she didn't care; she just held fast, her own lungs crying out for fresh air, her eyes stinging in the cold, dark water.

"_Fine, if you want it to end like this, then so be it. Don't say I didn't warn you though!"_

This time, the words seemed to be far away already, and her mind was getting fuzzy. She was glad that she was underwater right now, because she would hate to give Emilie the satisfaction of seeing the tears rolling down her face. Not tears for herself though. She couldn't care less about her own life right now. She was just sorry for Damon. As everything faded to black around her, her last thought were of him, of his smile, as he realized that she really was in love with him, of the intensity of his blue, blue eyes when he looked at her.

Xoxoxoxoxoxo

Just as he was pulling a stake free from another chest, he saw Elena, her back to Emilie, eyes searching for something. Then they locked on his, and a sad smile adorned her lips before she spoke. Of course he couldn't hear a thing because of the damn noise all around, but he could still make the words out, reading them from her lip.

_I'm sorry Damon. I love you._

And then she turned around and disappeared under the water of the river, taking Emilie with her. He wished he didn't know what she was talking about, but sadly he did.

_**Flashback**_

_**Two days ago; Salvatore Boarding House, Damons room**_

…_. Also, ripping the magic out of her would also mean that little-Miss-raise-the-dead here would lose hers. Because of the family line…_

_And as I'm already at the options you should avoid… the easiest way to send her back is to cut the strings that are keeping her here. Meaning, to kill you and Damon. Because, you see, she can only be here, because you are here. The spell that the little Bennett witch here did, only worked out because Damon had been there. The spell… it cut Damons…. Well, his immortality in half. One half stayed with him, the other settled itself inside of you. We know, of course, that you brought a few… extras from wherever you ended up. Anyway, Emilie hitched a ride with you; clung to the path you made, and stole a little from you both. She lives on borrowed energy. When the supply gets cut off, she dies. Also… if either of you die, the other does too. You and Damon are bound to each other. Either you both live, or you both die."_

_**End of Flashback**_

He knew what Elena was doing right now. She wasn't strong enough to kill Emilie the normal way so she just… made sure that she died herself. He felt his heart clench together, too many feelings at once trying to break out, but he put a stop to that. There was no point in grieving right now. He wouldn't have to stay behind.

It seemed like an eternity had come and gone by the time Emilie came out of the water again, pulling a limp Elena after her. He wondered for a moment why nobody had bothered to end him, as he had been standing here for a few minutes, not even trying to defend himself. But he didn't care, not really. His eyes were trained at Elena who was carelessly tossed to the ground. Her skin was very pale and her lips had turned a purple-blue color. Her chest was still, no breath widening it. Right now, her heart probably was still working, even if weak. It had too, because he was still standing. But soon it would stop its struggle.

And just as he thought that, he could feel himself growing weaker, an ache building were his heat was – a real pain this time, not the one caused by emotions.

He fell to his knees beside Elena (when had his feet started to move? He couldn't even remember walking towards her), taking her cold hand in both of his and leant down to place a soft kiss on her unresponsive lips.

From somewhere behind him he could hear screaming – but not the scream of someone fighting, hurting or dying. It was the scream of someone losing a loved one. And soon, there were others joining the first one. But he couldn't care. Nothing was important anymore. As his strength left him, as he slumped to the side, he could see that all fighting had seized, all parties looking in their direction. He rolled onto his back, even if it cost him almost all the strength he had left. But he had to see if it had worked. And really, just as Isobel had told them… Emilie was on her knees, gasping for breath that wouldn't come, staring horrified at her hands that were starting to resemble a mummy – As did the rest of her skin. He had seen enough now though, and turned his head back to Elena. There was nothing else he'd rather see in his last moments. And then he felt his heart slowing down and finally stopping, and he knew no more.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Yep, I know. Cliffhanger – again! But I do love cliffhangers (at least, I like WRITING them), so you have to bear with me. Only the epilogue to go after this one, so there are not many chances left for you to tell me what you think about this story! So go and click the little button below people, I can't WAIT to hear what you think. Also, reviews are love!

So long,

Zora


	27. Epilogue

Oh dear... here we are, the epilogue. I can't quite believe that I'm done with that story but alas, I really am. Now, for the last time (at least for this story) I thank all my readers and reviewers and more than anyone else, my dear beta AVECIA. First, she was the one who made me write more than one chapter. Also, without her help, NONE of these chapters would have been good enough to post here. So, THANK you, my dear.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything about TVD, I just mess with them for fun.

Aaaaand: On with it!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

The soft, slightly red tinged morning sun made the parlor of the Boarding House look like a scene frozen in time. Amidst an assortment of still blood-crusted weapons were a few crystal tumblers, some empty, some still half full with whatever had been in there. The light broke on the intricate cut of the glasses, painting the desk, weapons and walls in sprinkles of light.

Dirty shoes and carelessly thrown jackets were on the floor, adding to the overall unreal feeling everything had right now.

She had gotten up only a few minutes ago, barely believing that everything was over now. Finally, she entered the room fully, slowly making her way to the lone figure on the couch, sitting down on an armchair across from the other woman.

They sat there for a few minutes, neither one speaking or otherwise acknowledging the presence of the other. But then the older one (at least, in looks) sat up straight and began to speak.

"So… It really came to an end then. I knew that Emilie would fall, she was too full of herself, and hadn't thought of the consequences the death of both Elena and Damon would bring. But it kind of is surreal, don't you think? That she is gone, and no one despite those two had to die."

Katherine rolled her eyes then. Isobel always did stuff like that – looking down at life as if it was worth nothing. Not even she, herself, was so utterly shut off. Not since she had taken it upon herself to help Elena through the changes that death had brought her.

"Yes Isobel, it is quite a wonder. Now, is there a reason for you being here, or did you just come to irritate me; because let me tell you, I'm _not_ in the mood."

Isobel just grinned and took one of the tumblers off the table, sniffing it.

"Blood and Bourbon? I was under the impression that that was Damon's idea of a cocktail – before the little Bennett witch made him half of who he was."

"Yes well, sometimes he did have good ideas. Alcohol and blood. The latter to quench the hunger, the first to help with everything else. That's mine, so put it back down."

Rolling her eyes, Isobel did what she was told and then got to her feet.

"Well, as nice as this little chat was, I just came to say goodbye. I packed my stuff and am about to leave this deathtrap of a town. But as everyone else is still firmly buried underneath pillows and blankets, I guess you'll have to tell them for me. I would say 'have a nice life' but… first, I don't actually wish that you will have it nice, and also I am sure that we will see each other again… unfortunately. So, see you."

With that she turned, and blurred out of the room, the entrance door slamming shut behind her.

Katherine just shook her head then got up herself – taking her glass, emptying it in one swallow, setting it back down on her way past the table – and went upstairs again.

No reason in wandering around the house with no one else around to help her chase her thoughts of the fight away. Because every time she closed her eyes, she could see everything again, as if she was still there on the clearing.

She saw Elena crashing into Emilie, the both of them quickly disappearing from sight, sinking into the murky waters of the river.

She saw Damons hollow expression – saw how his eyes first went wide with horror and sorrow, and then turned soft and gentle and resigned.

Then there was Emilie, coming out of the water again, lugging a pale Elena after her.

And then, everything was Elena. Elena lying on the ground, Elena's eyes, still half open, looking at nothing; her skin ashen, her lips blue… her lungs not working and finally her heart giving out on her.

As the last thud of that precious heart rang in her ears, reality set back in with a vengeance. She saw Damon, lying on the ground beside her descendant, equally still.

It was only a small consolation that Emilie lost grasp on her borrowed life, playing 'Gone With The Wind' right beside them… the wind _literally_ carrying away the dust that was left of her.

Shaking her head, she forced herself back into the present, away from last night. It wouldn't help anyone to live in the past.

She silently knocked on the door to Damon's room then, waiting for an answer. There was none, of course, so she just opened the door and went inside.

Damon and Elena both were on the bed, facing each other, hands entwined. Katherine smiled at the sight – it really was ridiculous how sweet those two looked together.

Then she slipped out of her shoes and into the bed, lying down right beside Elena and throwing an arm over her waist. For a moment she buried her nose in Elena's neck, and when she looked up again she looked into a pair of blue eyes.

"You _do_ know that usually, when no one answers the door that either there is no one inside, or someone _is_ inside, wanting their peace, right? Either way you're not supposed to come inside."

Katherine just smiled and put her hand over the joined ones of the other two.

"Don't care. Needed to be here and have proof that she is still alive. That you _both_ are still alive."

Shaking his head in exasperation, Damon opened his mouth to give a flippant opposition. But then he realized what she had said and closed it again. Rolling his eyes and huffing a little bit, he reached for the blanket that covered him and Elena, and pulled it over Katherine, too. He wouldn't outright say that she could stay here for awhile, or that he appreciated the sentiment of her wanting him _not_ dead. This would have to do and, considering the soft smile on her lips (which kind of freaked him out… Katherine didn't _do_ soft. Or smiles.), it did.

Damon closed his eyes again, quickly relaxing, and fell back asleep. Katherine wasn't so lucky, but this time as her mind wandered back in time, it wasn't _just_ unpleasant thoughts.

_**Flashback**_

_As she saw Elena lying there, virtually dead, it nearly brought her to her knees._

_She had thought it was bad back when the girl first had died, by her own hands. But back then, Elena was only a descendant. Now though, she was her sister, her best friend, the one person she could confide in. She was family; real family, not just a random person with a trace of her blood flowing in her veins. But she couldn't break down, not right now at least. Sure, there was no breath escaping her lips, nor the soothing sound of a heartbeat. But there was no lethal wound anywhere on her. Her neck wasn't broken, her organs were still intact. It was just a little water._

_And so she blurred over to her and sank down beside her. Rolling her onto her back, she didn't waste any more time. First she put pressure on her chest, pushing down again and again in the rhythm of an imaginary heartbeat. She wanted to change position to force air into her lungs, but then the witch was there and did just that. And so they worked together, desperately waiting for Elena to breathe on her own; for her heat to start beating again._

_Katherine had tears running down her cheeks, but she ignored the foreign feeling, just letting them flow, dripping down her chin, landing on Elena's already water-soaked shirt. Every moment that passed without chance made her more desperate, made her lose her composure more and more. And just as a sob wanted to break free, Elena suddenly took in a shuddering breath and started to cough. It was a wet, rattling sound but it was like a damn symphony at that moment._

_As she leaned back to make room, Bonnie helped Elena into a sitting position so she could breathe easier. Beside the still coughing woman, Damon started to move, groaning slightly and finally regaining consciousness again._

_**End of Flashback**_

No, certainly not only bad memories. With a smile painted onto her face – a smile that really could have been mistaken for one of Elena's herself – she finally fell asleep, content with the world.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

As Elena entered the kitchen later that day, it was bustling with activity. Damon was standing at the stove, barking orders left and right. Bonnie was standing at the counter beside him, expertly cutting tomatoes and some sort of fresh herbs, while Jeremy and Tyler were at the kitchen island behind them, working on putting together four different kinds of salads. Caroline and Matt had rooted themselves across from them, mixing drinks – Elena had the feeling that they chose this place so Caroline could send death glares at Damons back every time she looked up. Jenna and Alaric were busy setting the table in the dining room – getting a vehement _no_ as an answer every time they tried to help with the food.

Katherine was standing in the doorway watching them with some sort of morbid curiosity, Stefan right beside her. A house full of vampires, witches, werewolves and self-proclaimed vampire-hunters and… they were cooking. Together. And it looked quite expertly too, as if they had done that before. Which they probably had.

Smiling she went past Katherine and came to a stop behind Damon, wrapping her arms around his waist, looking over one shoulder.

"Hey. What are you making?"

Damon turned his head slightly to the side and pressed a feather light kiss on her nose.

"Nothing much. Just pasta. But we thought that something warm and actually self-made – and no Saltzman, adding water to a pack of Ramen is _not_ self-made – would be nice after the last few days."

Elena nodded and whispered a silent 'I love you' to him before she let go of him, going to help her aunt with the dishes. This was nice. She had her friends and her family back. And she had Damon and for once, there was no trouble looming on the horizon.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Bonnie sat on the desk in Damon's room; silently watching as he took all the postcards down from their vantage point over his bed.

He was putting them into a box, sorting them by the date they were written. The last week had been slow and relaxing, everyone still testing the waters of so much… well, peace. It had only been a matter of time till that got interrupted though. It wasn't as if this was a bad thing… but she would miss Damon and Elena.

But they had decided to pack their stuff and visit all the places that Elena had been to with Katherine. But this time, it would be just them, and they would travel the world and see everything with new eyes.

Or something like that. She had tuned them out as they started to sound like some of those romance novels old people read. It was kind of funny though, how sweet they were. Tough, ass-kicking Elena, with her neat sword and her tendencies to rip Kitsune apart, and the 170 something year old not-quite-vampire… and they spend their days cuddling on the couch, or sitting and whispering, smiling, laughing and generally being happy.

Now, their bags were packed and the flight to their first destination was already booked.

"You're coming back, aren't you? And I don't mean after you visited _all_ these places on the postcards. You'll come and visit us before that, right? Because I swear to god Damon Salvatore, if you wait six years like she did, you're going to regret the day you were born!"

Damon just looked over his shoulder, one eyebrow raised and a grin firmly on his lips.

"You could just say that you're going to miss me, you know? I know that you said so to Elena, so I don't know where the problem is."

For a moment she contemplated to ignore what he said and to go on with her lecture but…

"Oh alright. I'm going to miss you. _Please_ show up around here every once in a while. And bring Elena, because I would hate not to see my best friend for so long again. There, happy?"

"Very. Now, come here."

He turned around then and opened his arms. No contemplating this time – she just went and hugged him, burying her face in the crook of his neck. They let go after a few minutes and Damon finally put the last postcard into the box before picking it up with one hand.

Then he took the two remaining bags and went out of his room, Bonnie following at a slower tempo.

Downstairs the others already awaited them. Most of the others had sad looks on their faces, as nobody wanted to say goodbye – especially to Elena, who they had missed for six long years, not even knowing that she was alive. Well… Caroline couldn't quite bring herself to plaster a sad look on her face. She would miss Elena, but she couldn't be happier about Damon leaving.

Elena left her place beside her brother and stepped to him, taking one of his bags in one hand, and intertwined his now free hand with hers.

Then she turned around and pulled him after her, throwing a smile over her shoulder.

"We're going to call you as soon as we are in our hotel. Don't miss us too much, we're going to be back here to visit sooner than you think, promise!"

Nothing more needed to be said, as they had said their goodbyes earlier that day. Katherine had already left over an hour ago – planning on visiting her old home. They would meet up to spend a few days with her in just over a month.

Then Damon put his bags in the trunk of his car before they both piled in. Damon started the car and sped out of the driveway, all the while looking at her out of the corner of his eye. They had each other, the road and eternity ahead of them. Perfect.

In the end, everything was not as they had expected only a few years back. But then again, it would have been a boring life, getting exactly what was expected.

Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

So. Done. No more of this story. Now I have to do a little bit of whining… For some reason, I got very few reviews for the last two chapters, and I was kind of unsure… maybe my story wasn't good enough anymore? Well, whatever it was, PLEASE go and review this last chapter, because I REALLY want to know what you guys think. Of this last chapter, and the story as a whole. Thank you all that you stayed with me for this ride, I REALLY enjoyed working on this story! Keep your eyes open for something new, too, because I'm already working on a new multi-chapter fiction. I'll start to post it here, as soon as I have two or three chapters done! Now: Reviews are love and…

So long,

Zora


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